The One for Me
by StormyRebel
Summary: I had never counted on finding my second half when I applied to the exchange-program, and moved to La Push for a year. I wasn't actively looking for a boyfriend or love, but just tried to be happy. But now there's this rather insisting guy, and he is so sweet and caring, and everything I want in a boyfriend – and daresay I husband – he has. Full summary inside.
1. Nerves and Airplanes

**Disclaimer;** I do not own any of the setting or characters in the story, other than the OC's. All rights are reserved for Stephenie Meyer.

_**The One for Me**_

**Summary:** I had never counted on finding my other half when I applied to the exchange-program, and moved to La Push, Washington for a year. I wasn't actively looking for a boyfriend or love, but just hoping to be happy. But now there's this rather insistent guy, and he is so sweet and caring, and everything I could want in a boyfriend – and I daresay, a husband. But he is also secretive, and he has a bit of a temper, and keeps changing from hot to cold. That said, you have to take the bitter with the sweet…..could he truly be The One for Me? Jacob/OC story. Mostly OC POV. Post-NM, pre-EC.

**Opening Note:** I'm going to try and stick with how things progresses in canon, but to make this story work there is one thing that is changed – or rather stretched. Twilight and New Moon happen as they do in canon, but the Eclipse timeline starts August instead of May, and _this_ story begins in September – that means that very little of the Eclipse timeline has happened. Of course, that also means that Bella and Jacob haven't really seen each other in about four or five months – not just one and a half months, something I will try to let show in the story too.

Since I know most of you don't understand Danish, and I believe it will be more annoying with having a Danish sentence followed by a translation, I will just do this; when a full sentence is in italics, it's in Danish. This, of course, means that the characters who don't understand the language, will not know what is said. As I want to keep the characters in-character, the OC will be using European measurements (meters, Celsius, etcetera) and not American. She might, over the course of her stay, pick up on some of the American measurements, but it will not be easy to turn her from something as ingrained as that. When the chapters here and there are written from another point of view (most likely Jacob's), he will use American measurements, because, you know… he is American.

I can say already now that there most likely will be small changes to, well, Denmark and America and how it works – though that should really only be minor changes. If you read any big, blaring errors, _please_ don't hesitate to contact me so I can change them as soon as possible. The technology, however, you shouldn't contact me about. I don't know if iPads and iPhones actually are able to do the things they do in this story, but that's the way it is. And I'm almost completely sure that there wasn't some of the technology there is in this story, in 2006. But this is fanfiction, so I'm taking the liberty of changing things around.

The OC's in this story, but the main character, are all based on real people. Of course there are changes to fit the story, but I just thought I would mention that.

**Chapter One:** Nerves and Airplanes

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen, we're about to make our final approach to Port Angeles international Airport. Please return your seats to an upright position, and secure any bags, thank you."

The scratchy voice from the speakers roused me from my daydreaming, blinking a few times to focus on the present. A smile broke out on my face as I looked out the window, and saw the buzzing city down on the ground. I was finally here. Quickly returning my seat to its original position, and making sure my bag was secured, I sat down again and put my seatbelt on. To be completely honest, I was rather nervous about landing… as I had been as we had taken off… and occasionally when we were in the air. But can you blame me? I have never traveled by plane before and here on my first trip through the air, I was traveling to another country. All in all, the flight hasn't been a bad experience, but as with everything new and unknown, it was a bit scary.

Oh, I should probably introduce myself. Hi, I'm Anna-Marie Josefine Davidsen – I prefer to go by Anna. I turned eighteen last spring, the twentieth of May, and I was born and raised in Denmark. I'm one-hundred-and-ninety-one centimeters tall, (about 6' 2") so I'm not exactly small (quite the opposite, in fact), and have what people would describe as an hourglass form – something I have been envied for quite a bit since I began filling out when I was sixteen. My waist-length hair is red; not bright red, but rather a deep red, a couple of shades lighter than auburn colored. My hair is probably the thing I like most about myself; it was something I had inherited from my mother's side of the family.

I didn't exactly have what you would describe as an 'easy childhood', but I know many more children have had, and have, it much worse than I did. I am an only child, so no siblings and both my parents were only children, so I don't have any aunts, uncles, cousins or the likes. In fact, all I had was my mother and father, and we were quite happy. Unfortunately they died in a fire when I was eight – a fire I survived, which has left me quite afraid of fire – and I entered the foster care system. You would think that a nice girl like me would have an easy time getting adopted, and it would have been so, if it wasn't for the small fact that I had a chronic illness.

It isn't anything that really is that obvious, but left untreated it really played a number on me. The illness is named Crohn's Disease, and basically it's a part of my intestines that has the problem. And it's chronic since it's based in my immune system. So yeah, I don't want to bore you with the details. All you need to know is that I have to take my medicine, and that I had to have an operation when I was seventeen because of it. The end result was the same; people wouldn't take the risk of adopting a sick child, no matter how healthy I looked. It burned when I was smaller – and to be honest, it still burns even now that I have exited the system, but as I've grown older, I can't really blame them. So, I grew up in a group-home, being the one who lived there the longest for the last couple of years. As I mentioned, it wasn't bad living there, but it stung around holidays when I didn't have any family to visit and the like.

My best friend, though, took some of the pain away. His name is Kazewa – I call him Cassie, though he despises the name like the plague (or so he tells me) – and we met each other when we were ten, while we both were in the fourth grade. You might think that it's weird that my best friend is a boy, and you wouldn't be the first to think that. Sure, there have been very few periods where it has been awkward, like when we first entered puberty and Cassie was a bit boob-fixated, but we worked it out. And, sure, we tried dating for a bit when we were fifteen, but it didn't really work out. Not in a bad way; I can honestly say that it was very nice to be in a relationship with Cassie (he is a real gentleman, and he has _skills_), but that just isn't enough. We could both feel that there wasn't a romantic spark – there wasn't a foundation for a _real_ future for us. So we settled for being best friends… though, I'll admit, the line is blurry sometimes. But I wouldn't have it any other way. He is the closest thing I have to family, and the one person I know I will always be able to count on, no matter what. Like, if I killed someone and had to get help to hide the body, Cassie is the one I would call. Shit, that sounds so wrong saying it like that, but I hope you get the point. He is also the one I moved in with when I turned eighteen (that's what I meant about 'blurry lines'), since I couldn't stay at the group-home anymore – you know, just until I could find a place to stay, and that would only happen when my exams were finally completed.

Now that you know a little bit about me, you might ask what I'm doing in the US. Well, I'm an exchange student (though that almost didn't happen due to me applying so late) and I'm enrolling in La Push High School for the next year. It's really 'just for fun' for me, as I've already graduated with some of the highest marks of the year at what is the Danish equivalent of a High School. But… for the graduation-ceremony I didn't have any people just for me. Sure, Cassie's family has become like a family to me, but, well… it sounds really selfish, but I just wanted to have someone there just for _me_, you know. I realized I needed some time away from everything I know for a bit, but that's not exactly easy for an eighteen year old – even with the more than generous inheritance I received when I turned eighteen. So I applied to study a year in the US. As I mentioned, it almost didn't happen because I applied so late, but because of my good grades and someone opening their house up for me, it happened.

You can bet Cassie was mad at me at first – I had applied without telling him, and he had found out by the letter that was sent to me to inform me that there was a place for me to stay. But after sitting down and talking to him, he accepted it. He was still a bit hurt that I hadn't told him and that I would be leaving him behind for some time, but I honestly didn't think I would get a spot so late and we could always video chat. During the last few weeks he has even gotten rather excited on my behalf, and thinks it will do me good. So… here I am now. I just hope that everything will be as good as I have made it out to be.

Anyway, back to the present; in the end, there was no reason to worry about landing – which I really knew already, but as I said; new things. The flight landed smoothly in Port Angeles, and alongside the rest of the passengers I exited the airplane and headed toward the luggage carousel. I have heard stories of people having to wait hours on their luggage, so I guess I was pretty lucky with only having to wait thirty-five minutes. With the small bag I had with me on the plane, I also had two trunks, my guitar case and a large sports bag. Now, I'm a relatively fit girl for my age, but I admit to having problems carrying all of this – more because of the amount, rather than the weight… not that it was exactly light. Good thing that I didn't have to carry it for too long; just out of the terminal should be enough. Then the people I would be living with for the next year, hopefully, would be waiting for me… I just hope I could recognize them.

"_Calm down, Anna. There's nothing to be nervous about; these people opened up their home to you of their free will. No one forced them,_" I told myself as my nerves began acting up again. While I wasn't one of those overly shy people, I wasn't exactly forthcoming either. And I was probably more shy than otherwise. I needed a moment before meeting the family I was going to live with, so I went to the bathroom – which really isn't that easy with all the luggage I was carrying around, but I managed. I was glad that there weren't too many in the bathroom I had found – only two other people, one of whom was on her way out.

Putting my luggage in the corner – still clear in my view –, I stepped up to the mirror-covered wall by the sinks. Splashing some cold water in my face, I looked up at my reflection to scrutinize how I looked; after all, you only got one chance at a first impression. I had really tried to pick some of my best clothes, while not overdressing. I didn't know much about the family I was going to live with – if they were well off or not – so I was afraid I was going to stick out like a sore thumb. That alone didn't bother me much, since I really couldn't care less what people thought of me, as long as I liked who I was. No, I just didn't want to rub it into their faces if they weren't swimming with money, nor did I want their pity by showing up in rags. I had used almost three hours going over what clothes I would be wearing today – something Cassie didn't let happen without complaining thoroughly –, but I had finally decided and was rather pleased with the choice. Now, however, I was second-guessing if it really was good enough. Sometimes I really wish I was a boy who couldn't care less how they were dressed… *sigh*.

I was wearing tight-fitting dark blue jeans – tight-fitting, but not revealing – and a striped (black and white) sleeveless shirt, and a pair of white sneakers – it was summer after all, and being Danish I had learned to appreciate it while it lasted. My hair hung in a very low ponytail over my right shoulder, and I was wearing almost no jewelry – only a necklace I had been gifted by Cassie while we were dating, and a beautiful wrist-watch, also from Cassie, when we graduated only months ago. The necklace was very pretty and simple: it hung on a black ribbon, and held a single, small silver heart, which opened up to show a picture of the two of us – Cassie and me, laughing. On top of the heart the words '_Always There_' was etched in English. The wristwatch was slim and was of silver… _pure_ silver. When I had found out I had almost blown a gasket, but Cassie told me that his parents had chipped in – which really didn't help. It took him almost an hour for me to accept it; in his words I deserved it, since I graduated at the top of our class.

Taking one last, deep breath, trying to muster all the courage I had, I got my luggage and exited the bathroom and made my way out of the airport. Once again, though, I faltered at the last corner before the small hall exited from the part of the airport where you needed a ticket, and into the 'public' area, where family and friends would welcome their loved ones back. It was highly probable that the family I was going to stay with was waiting just out there – scratch that, they would be there unless they were delayed by something –… only mere meters from where I was standing now… only separated by a single wall (albeit a thick one). Nothing for it, I guess.

My heart beat faster than I could ever remember it had as I stepped through the gate. I briefly noticed people's eyes going over me, checking to see if I was the one they were waiting for. None of them settled their sights for me, either finding the person they were looking for beside me, or turned their vision back to the gate. There was one woman, however, who didn't have the same look as all the others; it was as if she didn't know who she was looking for. Maybe she was the one I was supposed to stay with; she was Native American, after all… or I could just read the sign the giant man beside her held, which said 'Anna-Marie Davidsen'. My nerves were really getting to me now.

Putting on what I hoped was a sweet smile I walked over to the two while dragging my luggage. I took the last few seconds I had to look them over; they were both very beautiful – I guess I should say handsome about the young man – and exotic. You would have to look far and wide back home to find people who even loosely resembled them. The woman – who must be Sue Clearwater – was stunning for her age – not that she was old! But she was a mother, so she had to be at least in her late thirties. Sue had a narrow face with black eyes and black hair. Her hair ran down to her shoulders, fanning its black beauty out. The young man… well, bluntly said, he was a hunk. He was tall, perhaps about one-eighty centimeters… which sadly meant that I still had a good eleven centimeters on him – sigh; some things never change, no matter what continent you are on. He was built quite leanly, clearly having muscles, but they weren't, you know, bulky or overly big. He was a lot like Cassie in that (I just hope that this guy doesn't take pleasure in showing his muscles off all the time). He had a childish trait to his face, as if he wasn't fully grown yet, and that boyish countenance sported deep hazel eyes and a huge happy grin – the smile he had clearly inherited from his mother, though they presented it in two different ways.

"Erm, hello," I said as I stopped in front of them, which caused them to focus on me instantly. "I'm Anna… Are you the Clearwaters?"

"Ah! Anna, I'm Sue Clearwater, and this is my son Seth," Sue greeted me with her smile as I shook hands with her, motioning to her tall (but not as tall as me) son beside her when she mentioned him. "Did the flight go well?"

"The flight went well enough. Scary, you know, but nothing happened," I repeated. This was good, she was nice. And she was dressed in clothes that were of about the same quality as mine, so that's good too. I turned my attention to her son, offering him my hand to shake in greeting… and he was just standing there, looking at me with a frown. He wasn't doing anything offensive, it was just, you know, weird. A small shove from his mother snapped him out of it however, and he accepted my hand. Gosh, he was hot – in more ways than one. But this time I meant temperature wise.

"Hello," he greeted me in a smooth voice. I will say it now; yes, Seth was hot (the other kind, you know, really handsome) and I was sure he was going to be a heartbreaker, and I would be lying if I said that I didn't find him attractive. But he was just a kid; that much I could tell from just the few moments we'd been standing there. He was very nice and sweet, and couldn't be much more than fifteen years old. Now, I'm all for going out with a boy who is fifteen, if he's just a bit mature. Does that make me gross? I wouldn't think so.

"Seth, take some of her luggage, won't you? It can't be easy for you to carry all that by yourself," Sue spoke up (the last part directed at me), and bringing me out of my musing. I smiled at her, trying to not get just the tiniest bit freaked out by Seth and his looks.

"Thank you. Do you mind if I text someone back home, telling them I've arrived in one piece?"

"Sure, dear. You don't have to ask about things like that."

Smiling once again, I retrieved my iPhone from the bag I had with me on the plane and walked a few meters away and turned off the 'Airplane mode'. While texting Cassie that all was well, and that he was right that I shouldn't have worried so much (both about the airplane AND meeting the Clearwaters), I heard Sue and Seth talk to each other. She asked something along the lines of 'Did you…?', to which he quickly responded no. He was about to say something else when the speakers in the airport turned on and announced a flight. I felt bad about having overheard them, and promised myself that I wouldn't do that again. They were nice people, after all. Even if Seth was a little weird.

It didn't take long to make it to the small car they had. After putting the luggage in the trunk, I was about to enter the back of the car when Seth stopped me. He insisted that I sit in front, since I was taller than him. I was split between being annoyed that he actually pointed out my abnormal height, and being grateful that I wouldn't have to sit cramped in the back. Me being me, however, I quickly settled for being grateful. Besides, Seth could sit behind his mother's seat and still have a bit of room for his feet – something I wouldn't have. The drive from Port Angeles to La Push took about one and a half hours (I didn't really look at my watch). I'll admit, it was awkward – the drive that is. But then again, that _is_ to be expected when you sit in a small car with people you've just met. I had learned a little more about the two of them by the time we parked outside their house in La Push. As we stepped out of the car, Sue went ahead and went inside, while I was about to get my luggage out of the trunk. Seth, however, had other plans and quickly pushed me gently aside and took them out himself. I was about to protest, but he quickly brushed me off. Defiantly, I took one of the suitcases and walked towards the house while towing it after me… Seth laughed at that, and I couldn't help but smile. This was a little bit what I remember having a real family was like.

The house looked beautiful and rustic. It wasn't in the center of the small town, but rather a little out of the way – though, you could still see the neighbors down the road. It wasn't exactly a small house, but not a mansion either; the house was elevated from the ground, and you had to walk up to a small porch to get to the door. It was built of dark wood (which I thought gave the house its true beauty), which showed how old the house was by the wear. It's not that it wasn't taken care of or anything like that, but things wear down over time, no matter how well you try to preserve it. There wasn't a fence or anything to encompass the garden, but from what I could see, it was huge – and I didn't even have a clear view of the back of the house.

"Something wrong, Anna-Marie?" Seth asked coming up behind me, making me jump a little. I turned to face him with an amused glare.

"It's Anna, please," I told him. "And no; nothing is wrong. I'm just taking in your home. It's beautiful."

"All right, Anna. Seen anything like it?"

I shook my head in denial. "No, I haven't. Denmark is full of old buildings that are several hundred years old, but I haven't seen anything like this. As I said, it's beautiful." Seth seemed pleased by that, and started to jump up the stairs with the rest of my luggage… yes, I said _jumped_. I didn't have any problem getting the single suitcase I was carrying up the few steps of the porch – as I mentioned; I'm relatively fit and not exactly weak –, but compared to Seth I could just as well have been a ninety-year old lady. But I made it inside only a few seconds after Seth, while admiring the cute backside I caught a glimpse of disappearing through the front door.

The inside of the house matched how it looked on the outside; rustic and beautiful. Most of the first floor was the room I was standing in, which basically was the living room, kitchen, and the hallway mashed together. If anyone had ever suggested that combination to me, I don't think I would've thought it would be that practical… but the Clearwaters seemed to make it work, with a kitchen island and everything. It made the house seem much bigger than it was – which meant that it seemed huge now. I could spot two doors leading into other rooms on this floor. Sue caught me looking around the house, much like Seth had done moments earlier, and she smiled at me.

"What do you think?" she asked me.

"As I just said to Seth, it's really beautiful."

"I'm glad you like it." She looked around the room with a sad smile. "It's been passed down in my husband's family for generations. I think it was Harry's great-great-great-grandfather who first built on this land. Of course it has changed since then, and the house was destroyed sometime during Harry's great-grandfathers time, so he had to build anew and that's the house you stand in now. When Harry's parents died and we inherited the house, we made a few changes ourselves, but…"

"It's amazing. I can't wait to meet him," I told her in awe. There would never be something like that in Denmark – at least not to common-folk. Of course our royal family could trace their family line back to the Vikings in the ninth century, but most families only knew their history for a few generations. Then there was me who only knew my parents names, and that was it. A bit sad, actually. That's when I noticed Sue's grief-stricken face.

"Harry died a few months ago," she said sadly.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring bad memories up," I apologized quickly. Sue didn't seem offended, but I felt like I should amend. "I hope you can keep this to yourself, but I know how it is to lose someone. My parents died back when I was eight…"

"Oh, you poor thing!" Sue's attention snapped to me immediately, forgetting her own pain for the moment. I smiled to myself; she really was a loving mother at heart.

"It's okay," I smiled softly at her. "Or no, it's not, but it's almost a decade ago that it happened. I've grown accustomed to the feeling. I just wanted you to know I know how it is. I just… I don't want people to know, because then they will feel sorry for me for the first month or two, and that's so tiring."

"Of course, dear," she nodded. "Why don't you go upstairs? Seth should be setting your room up."

I did as she suggested and went upstairs, as she went to the kitchen. The theme of the 'rustic and beautiful' continued; the room I entered seemed like a semi-hallway full of family pictures and knick knacks, and there were five doors, only one of which was open. Since I could hear scraping and bumps from the room I guessed that that was the room I would be staying in and went to stand in the doorway. Entering the room I was surprised by how big it was; surely I wouldn't be staying _here_. But there my luggage was, and Seth was kneeling beside an almost-finished bed, putting the last two legs on it. It was rather bare, only having a desk, and wardrobe, a nightstand, and the bed. It was like heaven on a platter for me.

"Whoa," I couldn't help but say.

"Sorry that the bed wasn't finished," Seth said with his back to me, as he finished screwing on the third leg, and started on the fourth and final. "I accidently broke my bed last week, and I had to use the one we had ordered for you. This bed only arrived this morning when we were about to drive out to the airport."

"It's fine – actually it's more than fine," I said as I looked around the room. There were two windows, I noticed, looking out over the backyard. There wasn't any fence there either, but the garden ran directly into a forest. "It's amazing." At Seth's confused look I decided to explain, "Last time I had my own room was when I was nine. Since then I have shared room with at least one person, many times two or three."

"Oh," was all he said. Not that I could blame him; what do you really say to that? He finished putting on the last leg, and with ease I wouldn't have thought possible, flipped the bed over and put it up along one of the walls, and quickly put the thick mattress in its place. "Well, I'll leave you to unpacking. Ma will come up with your linens soon." He walked past me into the hallway, pointing out the different doors to me. "The bathroom is at the end of the hallway, and we have cleared out a shelf for you if you need anything there. My room is just beside you there, and Leah's room is just across. Ma's room is beside Leah's and across my own."

I nodded. "Leah's your sister, right?"

"Yeah, she had to go to our work for an extra shift, but she'll hopefully be back by dinner." Then we just stood there for a few seconds, with him looking at me with that weird look. I think something flashed across my face, because he blinked two times. "Well, I'll let you unpack. I'll be downstairs with Ma helping with dinner. We're having something Danish in your honor." The last part was said with his dashing smile.

"Wow, thanks. You didn't have to do that," I smiled. Then I pointed to the room I would be staying in, "I'll get to my unpacking."

I went inside my room again as he went downstairs, and I just stood there a few seconds. I could finally feel the jetlag working its unwanted magic on me. It's to be expected when you fly as far as I had, and basically going nine hours 'back in time'. I would be dead on my feet tonight, but I was confident that I could stay awake. If I didn't, it would just take so long to find my new circadian rhythm. I shook my head to get the blurry edges out of my vision, and went over and opened my first suitcase. It was the one with my electronics, my bathroom supplies, and some of my clothes.

Now, something you should know about me. Yes, I have quite a bit of money that I inherited from my parents – which only grew from the life insurances –, but I only got my hands on that money back in May when I turned eighteen. I grew up with only the money I earned working, which wasn't that much. So yes, an American teen might say I was 'loaded', but I don't like people knowing that, and I don't like spending much money. However, Cassie said I needed to blow some of it on 'equipment' as he said. Much of what he wanted me to buy, I didn't want, but I did end up buy a new iPhone, an iPad, and some new clothes (the last part I didn't have _that_ much of a problem buying). I ended up buying Cassie an iPad and iPhone for a graduation gift.

Anyway, I quickly took my toiletries to the bathroom – it was basically just a bit of makeup (I'm not that big on that), perfume, and my hairbrush and blow-dryer. I also put my medicine on the shelf in the bathroom. The next thing I sat up was the iPad in its stand, and my phone charger. As soon as it was in place I looked at my watch to check the time. I bit my cheek; it was five-nineteen p.m. Which meant it would be two-nineteen a.m. back in Denmark. Cassie had asked me to call him as soon as I was settled, but I also knew that he almost always partied on Fridays –oh wait, it would be Saturday night to Sunday back home… This time difference would take some getting used to. It was the same difference, though; Cassie liked to party on the weekends, and would normally be sleeping till eleven or twelve in the morning. And he would only just have gone to sleep by two.

My need to talk to my best friend got the best of me, and I linked the ipad and iphone together and video-called Cassie. Two beeping tones later, and Cassie's face popped up on my iPad's screen. As soon as it happened, a smile spread across my face – no one could get me to smile like Cassie could. Of course, it helped that he wasn't harsh on the eyes. Both his parents were of Iraqi descent, but both had grown up in Denmark, he had that middle-eastern look – a look he pulled off very well. He had jet-black hair and a slight dusting of stubble which showed he hadn't shaved for a few days. My favorite physical attribute was his eyes; they were the most gorgeous brown. And I don't mean the deep brown which is almost black, or the almost honey-colored. His eye-color was truly unique, being a very light brown.

"_Who is it_?" Cassie asked with a sleepy voice, holding the phone up to his ear, so all that I could see was his cheek and hairline.

"_It's me!_" I laughed. "_You're holding the phone wrong, by the way_."

"_Annie?"_ he asked, suddenly quite awake. I could see the phone flip upside down, and him getting up from bed. About ten seconds later the screen went black for a short moment, before showing a picture again; this time it showed Cassie bare-chested, with his room behind him – which meant he had connected it to his ipad. "_Why are you scowling?_"

"_Stop calling me Annie!"_ I told him in mock-offense. He simply rolled his eyes.

"_Then stop calling me Cassie_."

I smirked at him. "_Come on, you know you love it_."

"_Only when it's you who calls me that, babe,_" he retorted with a smile. And I knew he was right; when we started in upper secondary school, some other girl from our class heard me calling him Cassie, so she decided to call him that too. Both Cassie and I turned with dark scowls toward the girl, who quickly scrambled away and didn't dare talk to us for a week. "_Anyway,_" Cassie started again. "_How was the flight? Was it as bad as you made it out to be?"_ The last question was laced in a teasing tone which caused me to pout.

"_Come on, don't tease me about that. But no, it wasn't. The takeoff and landing wasn't pleasant though, but not anything near what I had thought it would be_."

"_Told you_," he teased again, as I rolled my eyes at him. "_So… what're you doing?"_

"_Oh_," I exclaimed as I got up, having completely forgotten about the task at hand at the sight of my best friend. "_I'm unpacking. My iPad and iPhone was just in the first bag, and I couldn't help myself. I had to call you. You don't mind that I unpack while talking, do you?"_

"_Of course not; unpack away… or something._" I beamed at him as I disappeared out of his view and dove into the clothes in the open suitcase. "_How does the family you're staying with seem?_"

"_Well…"_ I started answering while towing the suitcase over to the wardrobe, having decided it would be easier to have it there while unpacking it. "_I've only met two of them, Sue and Seth, since Leah, the daughter, is at work. And I was stupid enough to ask about her husband when she mentioned him, even though I hadn't been told about him. Of course he died a few months ago. Lucky for me, Sue didn't take offense by it."_

"_Only you,_" Cassie laughed as he shook his head, making me glare in the direction of his voice. It was fortunate enough that the wardrobe was in view of the iPod, so he put up his hands in mock-surrender. "_Do tell about Sue and Seth, though_."

"_Well_," I stopped for a second to think about it. "_They both seem really, really nice. And that Seth guy is almost as handsome as you are_," I told him, and laughed with him as he puffed out his chest in stupid male 'my-cock-is-bigger-than-your-cock' pride. "_And Sue is really motherly… She kind of reminds me of what I remember of my own mother._"

"_Oh sweetie…"_

"_Yeah, well, it was nice, you know?"_ I told him as I gave him a soft smile – which, by the way, Cassie told was my trademark. "_Anyway, did you have fun yesterday at the party? You went with Julie and Martin, right? Did you get anything?_" I wiggled my eyebrows suggestively. It was no secret that Cassie was a ladies' man and loved to get laid. And, yes, he has always had that streak, even before we became a couple. But he had had a few girlfriends (including me), and when he did he was attentive and faithful as the best of them. Oh; Julie and Martin were two people from our grade whom Cassie and I hung out with. They were now a couple, and Cassie kept gagging every single time they made out. This was kind of funny, because they weren't doing much of anything – just small pecks on the lips. I had pointed out that he and I were not better when we were going out. In fact, I would bet that we were much, much worse… I distinctively remember using tongue in the hallways of our school.

"_Yes, I went with Julie and Martin, and no; I didn't get anything. I didn't really feel like it,_" he told me. Overly dramatic, I froze exactly where I was, dropping the clothes I had in my hand into my second suitcase, before turning slowly towards him gaping at him. "_What?"_

"_You, Kazewa Jaffari, didn't feel like having sex,_" I said deadpanned. Then I hurried over to the iPad pushed my face up against it with narrowed eyes. "_Who are you, and what have you done with Cassie?"_

He rolled his eyes. "_Ha ha, very funny. But can you blame me? I don't mean to sound girly or anything, but after having said goodbye to my best friend in the airport only a day earlier, I just didn't feel like fucking some random girl I picked up at a nightclub._"

"_Awww,_" I said with pouted lips, and proceeded like I was talking to a baby. "_Dwoes itsy bitsy Cassie mwiss little ol' me?_"

He blushed – actually blushed – and looked away. "_Shut up. I'm serious, Anna, you know that you're my best friend, right? I don't care what the other guys say or anything. You're the person I can trust with anything in this world."_ I dropped the teasing, and got a very soft look to my face, as I realized how much he missed me – and the feeling was mutual.

"_I know Cassie, and I feel the same way about you._"

"_Well, can you understand why I don't feel like 'getting some' when I just said goodbye to you?_" he asked me, using air quotes as he said 'getting some'. "_The only reason I even went was because I promised Martin and Julie that I'd be there._"

"_All right, I get it."_ I put the last of my clothes into the wardrobe, and began unpacking my sports bag. It was in that that I had my pictures, delicates, a few posters, and the few books I had brought with me. I had four pictures; two of Cassie and me – one when we were about eleven, and one taken only a few months ago –, one of Cassie, Martin, Julie, and me, and one of me with my parents from when I was about six or seven. I smiled with a few tears in my eyes as I saw the last one, but it always left me with a good feeling; I knew that my parents loved me. I had four posters with me; one of actress Sandra Bullock, one of actress Hilary Swank, one of actor Orlando Bloom (yummy), and one of a female Danish comedian named Linda P. While putting the pictures on the nightstand and the posters on the walls, I asked over my back. "_By the way, you never told me if you got that job at the music store. Oh, and I still think it's stupid you're waiting a year to go to university just because I'll be a year behind._"

"_It's not stupid; school has always been easier for me when we're together,_" he retorted.

"_Yeah, well, you know we're only going to have two thirds of the same classes anyway – and that's if we even get in,_" I said with a frown, worried that Cassie or I might actually not get accepted. As I said that I put my guitar case up against the wall next to my bed, and put the small black book in which I wrote songs in on the nightstand.

"_Now you're just stupid_," he told with a laugh. "_Come on, Annie, you graduated at the top of our class – hell, it wouldn't surprise me if you're in the upper most half of those with highest grade in Denmark. You'll get accepted. Anyway, to answer your question, yes I did get the job at the music store. It seems like a good place to work._"

I sighed as I walked over to the iPad again. "_I still don't agree with you waiting a year, but I guess I can accept it. Anyway, you'll be able to save a bit this year. Maybe for that car you want?"_

"_Maybe,"_ he shrugged.

"Anna, I got your- oh," it came from the door. I looked up to see Sue standing in the doorway with what I guessed was my bedclothes in her hands.

"Hey Sue," I greeted her with smile. "Come here; I'll introduce you to my best friend." Sue approached as I had requested and looked at Cassie through the ipad.

"_Anna! I don't have any shirt on!_" Cassie screamed at me as he dove out of sight, as soon as Sue came into view. I stifled a laugh, which caused Sue to give me a questioning look, since she, of course, hadn't understood what Cassie had said other than my name. It was only five seconds later that Cassie came into view again, wearing a t-shirt inside out. I laughed outright this time, and he glared at me.

"Sue, this is Kazewa," I introduced Kazewa to Sue. "And Cassie, this is Sue, the woman who has been kind enough to open up her home to me."

"Nice to meet you, ma'am," Cassie greeted trying to use a western accent, which caused me to giggle.

"You too, Cassie," Sue greeted him back. Then she turned to me. "Here are your linens. Why don't you make your bed, and then you can come downstairs? Dinner is almost ready, and Leah should be home soon."

"Sure," I nodded as I took the bedclothes. "I'll be right down."

"Good," she beamed at me. "Nice to meet you Kazewa," she nodded at the iPad before she went out.

"_I guess that's the chat we will have for now,"_ I sighed. "_You know, it's going to be very different not to see you every day._"

"_I know,"_ Cassie sighed. "_I don't have anyone I can show my muscles off to; Julie and Martin keep starting to make out every time I begin to do it_," he grimaced. I laughed at his expression, which caused him to smile. We truly were best friends. Sadly, in no time at all I had made my bed. I took a look at what would be my room for close to a year… It was really something. _My room_. _I_ decided how it should look – well, more or less. It was a awesome feeling either way.

"_I guess I'll have to hang up now,_" I declared sadly. "_We'll have to figure some timetable we can call each other in, because it can't work with you having to get up early, or me staying up late just to talk to each other_."

"_I would do that for you, you know,_" he told me seriously.

"_I know, but it will fuck up our circadian rhythm, and that would be rather bad_," I shook my head. "_Bye Cassie, love you._"

"_Love you too, babe,_" he told me, and I saw him reach out and push something. Then the screen went white. I sighed and went over to turn off the iPad. Then I took the 'every-day' shoes I had (it was only three pairs, and a pair of running shoes) and brought them down with me, my party-shoes been stuffed in the bottom of the wardrobe. I bumped into Seth in the hallway just outside my room, as he exited his own.

"Seth, where should I put my shoes?" I asked of him. He looked confused for a moment, but it quickly disappeared.

"We put just them by the front door," he answered me, and then moved to take the shoes. "Here, I'll take them."

"Erm, sure," I said, thinking it was funny. He was already walking downstairs when I had finished the sentence. I rolled my eyes and walked down after him. The smell in the air was delicious, and I was wondering what Sue was making; Seth said something Danish? I would get my answer soon enough… That's when I saw her; Leah was home. I saw her stiffen a little as I approached her, but the tension disappeared so fast I wondered if it had ever been there. She turned to face me when I was only a few meters away. She was beautiful; very exotic, clearly having inherited her mother's looks, with perfect copper skin, and eyelashes like feather dusters. While I still towered over her a good bit (something I had gotten used to), she was not small – she was at least one-seventy-five, probably a couple of centimeters taller. Her black hair was worn in a short pixie cut that really complimented her.

I offered her my hand in greeting, and beamed at her. "Hello, you must be Leah. I'm Anna, and it's so good to meet you." She used all of three seconds just looking at me, before carefully (still looking straight at me) accepting my hand.

"Yes, I'm Leah, as you already know," she said a bit stiffly, before walking past me to the dinner table. I stood there frowning slightly, wondering if I had done anything wrong.

"Don't worry about Leah," Seth's voice sounded from _right_ behind me. I think I jumped almost half a meter into the air.

"Shit, Seth, don't scare me like that," I laughed a little hysterically. He looked sheepishly at me with an apologetic smile on his face.

"Sorry. But, really, don't worry about Leah. She is a bit… She's been through some stuff that hasn't been easy, and it has left her a little cynical. She isn't evil or anything, just…yeah."

"Oh, all right," I said. Seth then went over to the table to sit beside Leah; they looked like they were arguing with low voices, while shooting me glances. I bit my lower lip lightly; I didn't want to be the cause for any fights. Nothing for it I guess; I just had to show Leah that I didn't mean any trouble. I walked over to the kitchen table as Sue took out a very large pan of what looked like meatballs. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Sure; you can take the shredded carrots over to the table," she told me while she raked the meatballs from the pan into a bowl.

"The what?" I asked confused.

"The shredded carrots," she told me again, pointing at the smaller bowl with shredded carrots and raisins. How did I not spot that?

"Oh, all right." With that I took the bowl over to the dinner table. Seth and Leah still looked to be arguing; Leah's scowl only having deepened. As I approached Seth seemed to say one more thing to her, which caused her to sigh heavily. It caused the scowl to lessen to almost not being there, but she didn't smile. Seth did, however – it wouldn't surprise me if he was one of those guys who just always smiled.

"Is everything all right?" I asked in slight concern as I put the bowl with shredded carrots at the table. I sat down beside Seth and across from Leah.

"Nah, everything's fine," Seth said with a grin. "Right Leah?" I didn't miss the slight force behind the words, like he implored her to agree with him. And she did – or rather, she didn't disagree with him. She grunted. Seth seemed pleased, however. I decided to let the matter go – if they had something going on, there was no need for me to fuck things up by getting involved. Perhaps if I had known them better I would try to help, but I didn't, so…

"Dinner's ready," Sue said as she put the meatballs on the table, next to the pasta and the shredded carrots. Then she sat beside Leah and across from Seth. "Well, what do you think?"

"Huh?" I asked stupidly.

"I was told this was Danish cuisine," she smiled at me.

"Erm, well…" I said and looked at the food on the table. It looked delicious, but it wasn't what I was used to back in Denmark. For one; the meatballs shouldn't enter the oven, and would have had spice on the surface. The shredded carrots would have raisins, shredded apples, and freshly pressed lemon-juice. The pasta looked like it did back in Denmark.

"It isn't Danish is it?" Sue asked a bit disappointed.

"Well, no," I answered honestly. "You got the basics down, but you're missing the details. Tell you what, if you have what is needed, I'll make a real Danish dinner for you sometimes next week."

"You cook?" Seth asked surprised. I raised an eyebrow at him.

"Am I supposed not to?" I challenged him good-naturedly.

"Well, no, it's just that girls who dress like you normally only care for their looks."

I rolled my eyes at him. "Yeah, well, I'm not a blonde bimbo who only cares how I will get married to the richest guy in the immediate area." I took a bite of my food, "I'll have you know that I've cooked since I was twelve. It isn't something I would use a whole afternoon on, but I don't hate it, and I don't burn water." The last part I chuckled at, remembering stuff from back home. The Clearwaters gave me a strange look, so I decided to explain. "My best friend, Cassie, couldn't cook if his life depended on it. I've tried to teach him for years, but he will never be able to make anything but toast – burned toast."

"Your best friend is a boy?" Leah asked doubtfully as Sue and Seth laughed. I caught Seth shooting her the same look as before, but she ignored it. "Are you one of those bitchy girls who just string a boy along and then dumps him?" I was surprised by her tone, but I answered her nicely; it wasn't the first time I had to _try_ and explain my friendship with Cassie.

"No way, I would never do that to him," I denied in the same tone I had been speaking in the whole evening. "We met when we were ten, a little over eight years ago. Back then it wasn't any problem, but we became a bit awkward with each other when we hit puberty – we worked through it, however."

"Still sounds like you're stringing him along, in my opinion," Leah said with a bored tone, but her eyes were burning into me. I raised my left eyebrow at her, not taking her bait.

"We tried dating for a while a couple of years ago, when we were fifteen. We were together for over a year, but finally agreed that our relationship wasn't going anywhere. Do understand; what we had was awesome, and great, and I don't trust anyone more than I trust Cassie, but we simply didn't have… we didn't have any truly romantic feelings towards each other. We're soul friends – that's the only way I can explain it." I paused. "It does help that he is incredibly hot, and he isn't exactly bad in the bed-department if you catch my drift," I said, wiggling my eyebrows at Leah. Then I remembered that Sue was sitting there, right beside her. My face quickly became the same shade of red as my hair. "Oh my god, Sue. I'm so sorry."

She laughed it off. "Don't worry about it, dear. I've heard much worse from Seth and his friends."

"Mom!" Seth exclaimed as his face went as red mine was.

It was only two hours later that I laid in my bed, totally beat from the long day. I had a good feeling about this; all was going to go well. I was going to have a normal, calm year over here, and then come back to Denmark and take the university by storm. Then I would become a world-class astrophysicist, and I would work with my best friend Cassie the engineer.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of my new story. I would have waited until I had a couple of chapters, but that really hasn't been my style so far. I like it better when I get feedback, chapter to chapter, so I can make things better in time and so on. Anyway, please review :).

Rebel Out


	2. The Giant and the Diner

**Disclaimer;** I do not own any of the setting or characters in the story, other than the OC's. All rights are reserved for Stephenie Meyer.

_**The One for Me**_

**Summary:** I had never counted on finding my second half when I applied to the exchange-program, and moved to La Push for a year. I wasn't actively looking for a boyfriend or love, but just tried to be happy. But now there's this rather insistent guy, and he is so sweet and caring, and everything I want in a boyfriend – and I daresay a husband. But he is also secretive, and he has a bit of a temper, and keeps changing from hot to cold. That said, you have to take the bitter with the sweet… could he truly be The One for Me? Jacob/OC story. Mostly OC POV. Post-NM, pre-EC.

**Opening Note:** Hey, sorry to take up space again in this chapter. Rest assured that it won't happen every chapter ;). I just wanted to thank **madmamabear** a thousand times for taking up the job as Beta! We've already had some awesome conversations about plot, and I'm sure she'll help make the story much better than it would be otherwise! So make sure to give her thanks, even if just mentally :).

**Chapter Two:** The Giant and the Diner

* * *

I woke up with a start, my heart hammering away and trying to break out of my chest. I took in deep gasps of air while laying my right hand on my chest, in an attempt to calm myself. I could still remember the orange flames dancing vividly in front of me, as painful, hair-raising screams emanated from the burning building. Feeling the tears on my cheeks, I quickly wiped them off before I sat fully up, swinging my legs over the edge of my bed. It had been a while, at least a few months, since I'd had **that** nightmare – or rather memory – of the night my parents died a decade ago. In fact, I hadn't dreamt about it since I moved in with Cassie and slept in the same bed as him.

My eyes snapped over to my phone and iPad which were recharging on my desk. I checked the clock then; it was six twenty-seven a.m., which meant it would be early afternoon in Denmark. Technically, I _could_ call Cassie, and I was rather sure that's what he would want me to do if he knew exactly what nightmare I had just had, but… I couldn't keep relying on him when I was over here in America. I don't want to cut him off, but I can't call him with every little thing – even if this wasn't exactly small. I let out a deep sigh and decided not to call him. I would tell him I had had the nightmare the next time I talked to him – at which time, I'm sure, he would reprimand me for not calling him – but not before then. I lay back down in the bed, trying for the next ten minutes to calm down enough so that I could go back to sleep. I soon realized that I wouldn't be able to.

"_Great,_" I said out loud to no-one in particular. "_Up before half past six on a Sunday; that must be a new record for you, Anna_." I glanced at the clock; twenty till seven; before jumping out of bed. I dove into my closet and took out a pair of panties, a sports bra, and tights shorts, and tiptoed out into the hallway and into the bathroom. Locking the door quickly, I put the clean clothes I had brought with me by the sink, and slipped off the t-shirt and panties I had slept in. It took me about two minutes before I figured out how to work their shower, and I quickly set the water to be hot, almost scalding.

Stepping into the larger-than-normal cubicle, I let the hot water run down my body and wash off the grime that had settled on my skin due to the nightmare. I couldn't figure out what had made me have the nightmare **now**. The other times I'd had this particular nightmare; it had been because I'd had an incident with fire, or that I had been under a lot of stress. It _could_ be because of the stress of flying cross-world, but I didn't think I had been _that_ affected. At least the dreams didn't freak me as much out as they had when I was younger. Several times in the group-home I had awakened screaming like a banshee from Tartarus. Oh well, it didn't do well to waste energy dwelling on it. It happened, and I must move on.

As soon as the worst of the grime was off, I washed and conditioned my hair and luxuriated in my body soap. As soon as it was washed off and the wonderful smell of being clean filled my nose I stepped out of the shower. Grabbing a towel from the cabinet I quickly dried myself off, fluffing and squeezing out my hair. The last of the water I got out of my hair with the help of my trusty blow-dryer. Wielding my hairbrush I quickly swept it through my hair. I had never been into doing something big with my hair, but I always made sure it didn't get tangled up or anything like that – because that shit hurt like hell!

Being done with the shower, I opened the window to let out the steam, and dressed myself with the clothes I had brought with me. It wasn't something I would wear for the rest of the day, just my usual getup when I was taking a run. It was my optimal outfit for running, very fitted and leaving my stomach bare. Of course, this also left the twenty centimeter, rather pink scar that ran horizontally just above my navel open to view. It bothered me a lot just after the surgery, but I tried to not let it get to me anymore. In time it would fade, so no reason using time and energy to hate it. I grabbed my dirty clothes and brought them with me to my room, tucking them into a corner reminding myself to ask for a laundry-basket from Sue. I quickly found my headphones and took my iPhone from its charger, and then I tiptoed downstairs. It only took a few minutes to locate a piece of paper and a pen; I glanced at my phone to check the clock – seven ten a.m. – and quickly wrote the note.

_**I've gone for a run, will be back by nine a.m. at latest.**_

_**Anna.**_

I left the note on the counter and stepped outside. It seemed like it would be a nice day, the sky, displayed in a multitude of colors with the sunrise, only had a few clouds in it. After I quickly hit play on my phone, smiling as Your Love Is A Lie by Simple Plan began blasting through my earbuds, I started my stretching warm-up. After two minutes of that I took off down the road (I was planning to run into the city proper), really making sure to take notice of the landmarks on the route where I was running. If I didn't, I would most likely be much later than nine a.m., and somehow manage to find myself in Canada somewhere.

I loved running, truly and wholeheartedly. It just felt so good to not have any goal for the moment, and just let your thoughts have free reign while being in a kind of daze. Or, you know, you could observe the nature around – and that was what I was doing right now. It was very green, much more so than Denmark. Or rather, instead of being green because of fields of corn and grass, it was green because of the many trees. Where I was running, a bit away from the center of the small town, I could see that the houses were widely spread out. A million smaller roads split from the main one, most likely leading to outlying houses. I promised myself to explore them thoroughly sometime later during my stay, but for now I just wanted to know the general lay of the land. The road soon ended and opened up into a beach (at which point I realized I had accidently run away from the city center, instead of toward it). I stopped and looked out over the ocean, laughing at myself. It would be so fun running this first week, and getting lost all the time. And yes, I'm serious – the most unexpected things are usually the most interesting too.

The beach itself – which was named 'First Beach' according to the sign – wasn't anything like what most people imagined beaches to be. It was mostly covered with fist-sized stones, only a very slim strip of sand by the sea. But… it had its own special charm. The beach wasn't bare either; decorated by what I would guess was driftwood trees. I stepped onto the beach and looked down the length of it. I couldn't see the end – not even when I stood on my toes! I took a moment to consider my options; either run back the way I came, or run down the beach hoping to possibly find another road that would lead me back to town. I chose the second option. There was bound to be a second entrance/exit to a beach as big as this – and even if there wasn't, I only had to run back the way I had come. I soon had myself positioned on the slim strip of sand (I wasn't going to run on stones unless I wanted a sprained ankle) and was running down the beach. As I breathed in the salty, moist air, my mind flashed back to multiple summers on the beach with Cassie and his family – and the last two summers, with Cassie, Julie, and Martin. We'd had some awesome times those nights, sometimes staying at the beach until sunrise (Julie and I especially loved that part, while the boys persevered through it). I decided that when I had mapped out the route I was going to be running regularly, I would definitely make sure that at least a part of it would be down a beach (there was bound to be more than one beach in a coastal location like La Push).

As usually happens, my logic didn't let me down and I found another road away from the beach about two kilometers down from where I had entered. This one didn't run down a residential road, but into the forest. I didn't even give it a second thought and was soon running along the forest-road surrounded by thick undergrowth backed by towering trees. By now the sun was above the horizon, and the early morning light filtered through the canopy of the summer green leaves of the trees, bathing the forest in a most beautiful jade glow. I felt serenity and awe at that moment – a moment that was ruined when a giant half-naked man jumped out of the undergrowth (without making a sound, mind you) _right_ in front of me.

"Aaargh!" I screamed as I bumped into his rock-hard chest at near top speed. I have some experience in running, so I wasn't exactly dragging my feet. And as often happens when one bumps into something at high speed, one falls on one's ass – which I did quite hard. I even had the luck to scrape my left arm on a stone on the path, so blood was now dripping down into the dark earth. "Shit!" I cursed in pain, and I quickly tore the buds from my ears.

"What the hell are you doing in the forest?" the words coming from the half-naked giant in front of me sounded extremely angry. I felt the anger flare up in me. Where the hell did he come from to talk to me like that, after jumping out on the road in front of me, resulting in me getting injured?! My eyes snapped from the deep wound on my wrist to the giant's face as I was ready to give him a real tongue-lashing.

My words died on my tongue as I saw the wide arrange of emotions running across his face, and his eyes changing from hard, to...adoring?, to confused, to finally settle on anger (though not directed at me). I took the few seconds he was standing frozen there to take him in. His body was incredibly thick and toned, his skin the beautiful russet color that the Quileute all shared. There were some serious muscles (was that an _eight_-pack!?). Now, this combination would've made most people look _so_ ridiculous and ugly, but on this guy it was balanced by his height. He was _tall_ – and I'm talking, like, taller than me; he must've been at _least_ two meters tall. His face was much like his body; defined and handsome. His hair ran down to around his chin, and was a beautiful, lustrous black. My perusal finally brought me back to his eyes; smoldering brown so deep they approached black to batch his hair. At the moment, those amazing eyes were still running through that variety of emotions.

A stab of pain from my cut wrist quickly snapped my mind back to the present, as I hissed and scrunched up my face in pain. "Shit," I repeated.

"I- I'm so sorry," the half-naked angry-turned-concerned giant stammered at me. "Are you all right? Here let me help you." He offered me his hand, and after scrutinizing him for a second due to his one-eighty mood-swing, I accepted it. A jolt of electricity ran through me as my skin made contact with his scorching hand, and I gasped. He didn't react to it other than glancing with pain at my wound, as he pulled me to stand up.

"Thank you," I told him, cradling my arm. "And I _think_ I'm okay. I just need to get it bandaged."

"But you're bleeding," he told me worriedly, as he took my arm to examine. I don't know why I let him do it, but something about him just told me that I could trust him. It was extremely stupid – to trust a half-_naked_ man you just 'ran into' in the woods in the early morning hours. That's a recipe for disaster if I've ever seen one.

"Yeah, and its red," I laughed at him. He looked up at me with that same worried look. I retrieved my arm and smiled at him. "It's not the first time I've bled, and it's very likely that it won't be the last time. Trust me, all it needs is a wash, rinse and dry, some antiseptic and a bandage, and I'll be good as new in no time at all."

"… All right, then," he said reluctantly. "Again, I'm _really_ sorry."

"It's okay," I told him. "Uhm, does this road lead out of the forest soon?" I asked him.

"Yeah, about a hundred feet down here, actually," he told me, pointing over his shoulder in the direction I had been running.

"Thank you," I smiled at him, as I began to walk down the forest-road. It only took me three seconds to sense that the man walked with me, which caused me to give him an amused glance before accepting it. "Why did you do it, by the way?"

"Why did I do what?"

"Why did you jump out of the undergrowth, screaming _'what the hell are you doing in the forest?'_?" I asked him again, doing a rather poor imitation of his handsome voice.

"Sorry," he apologized again. My! He really was an apologizing type of guy wasn't he? "I've had a bad month, but I didn't mean to take it out on you. I'm part of a neighborhood-watch, and part of our job is to make sure that people don't wander too far into the forest. You know, the wolves and bears and things like that."

"Oh," I said with a small frown. "Well, I apologize; I only just moved here yesterday and I didn't know that." And after a pause I asked with a hint of disbelief, "Really, wolves and bears?"

"Yeah?" he chuckled. "And why is that so hard to believe?"

"It isn't," I shook my head honestly. "Just… different. There isn't anything in the forest back home that can really attack you other than other humans – and that's pretty damn rare, too."

"Do you mind me asking where you're from?" I couldn't help but notice that his eyes were glued on me like my very words could save his life. It was flattering, but also a bit weird. His look kinda reminded me of the way Seth looked at me, just much more intense. Maybe it was a Quileute thing or maybe just an American thing – who knows.

"Not at all. I'm from Denmark."

"Really, Denmark?" he asked, his frown deepening for some reason.

"Yeah. And why is that so hard to believe?" I asked with a chuckle, repeating his words from moments earlier. I think he liked that, as his whole face lit up.

"Oh, it isn't. It's just so far away and not on my mind usually, you know," he smiled at me. "Why are you here in La Push now, then?"

"That's… a bit complicated," I said hesitantly. I knew I came here to get some time away from everything, but if I told him that he would want to know why I needed time from everything. And there were so many reasons for that that it would be very hard to figure out where to start and where to end. And, as much as he had this trusting aura, I just didn't _want_ to tell a complete stranger this. "Some things happened back home, and I have always wanted to study abroad, so this was the perfect time. I'll be here for about a year."

"So you're staying here for the whole year?" he asked, his eyes twinkling in excitement like a child on Christmas morning. I looked in merry wonder at this guy with the big smile. Could I really make this guy's day just by telling him I would stay here a while? And if I could; why?

"For the better part of the year, anyway."

That's when we exited the forest… and I had no idea where I was. On any other day I would just run around until I found something familiar, but the throbbing pain in my forearm told me I shouldn't be doing that today. I really didn't think that the wound was anything serious, but it was important I got it cleaned fast and got it wrapped up – else it could very possibly develop into something that was much more serious than a shallow gash.

"I don't suppose you know which way from here the Clearwaters live?"

"Seth's family?" the guy asked in mild surprised. "Sure, they live on a byroad a few miles down this one. You live with them?"

"Yeah, I do," I told him, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear. Then he just stood there. With me. Just outside the forest. _Staring_. I coughed, a bit uncomfortable at the unwavering attention (and with a feeling I couldn't figure out) he directed at me. "Aren't you, you know, supposed to be guarding the forest or something?" I asked in mild curiosity, waving my hand in the general direction from where we'd come. The guy glanced back through the trees for a moment, before shaking his head lightly.

"Nah, the other guys should be able to handle it for a bit without me. I'm more concerned with getting you home, since, you know, it's my fault and all that you were injured."

"I'm fine, really," I rolled my eyes good-naturedly, though after a small hesitation I couldn't fathom I continued, "but thank you." And we started down the road, this guy looking very protectively over me. It was both endearing, mystifying and frustrating. I let him do it, however, as it obviously made him feel better. We walked mostly in silence, just enjoying the nice fall morning. I couldn't help but shoot very appreciative glances at him. I tried to hide it, but I wasn't very successful. This guy seemed to be absolutely beaming every time he saw my eyes on him.

It didn't take too long for the elevated wooden house, which was the Clearwater residence, to come into view. From the sounds that came out the open kitchen-window, it was clear that at least one of the Clearwaters was up and about. I stopped at the driveway, tucking that same strand of hair behind my ear again.

"Well, here we are," I said in mild embarrassment. "Again, thank you." I was about to walk inside when he called for me.

"Hey," he said and grabbed my uninjured wrist. That sizzle of electricity ran up my arm again and I turned to look at him in mild confusion.

"I never got your name. I'm Jacob – Jacob Black."

"Nice to meet you Jacob," I nodded at him. "I'm Anna Davidsen." I tried to take another step up the path to the house, but the guy didn't let go. I jolt of worry flashed through me as all the things that could go wrong passed through my head, but one look at the guy – Jacob – calmed me. I didn't know why I knew it, but I _knew_ he wasn't going to hurt me.

"That's a beautiful name. Anna," he smiled and tried out my name. As the syllables of my name rolled from his lips I could feel my spine shiver with what I thought was excitement. My mind was going a hundred kilometers an hour trying to figure out why – I could feel my whole body almost tremble with energy and anticipation just by being in this guy's presence. As he asked a question again, I was snapped back to the present. "Anna? Will I get to see you at school?" I raised an eyebrow; he looked too old to be in school now. But I wasn't one to judge.

"Well, yeah?" I half asked. "I'm starting in the senior class tomorrow."

"Cool, then we ought to have some classes together!" I tried to walked towards the house again, but he still had his hand gently but firmly wrapped around my uninjured arm. I turned to him with my soft smile – you know, the one Cassie calls my trademark. I could practically hear his heart hammering away, and his eyes soften in response.

"Jacob, I have to get inside and get the wound cleaned."

"Yeah, all right…" he told me and _very_ reluctantly let me go. "And it's Jake, please."

I nodded. "Jake it is then." He then did something that surprised the hell out of me; he took my hand and brought it up to his mouth, his lips gently grazing my skin. If I thought I had felt a spark when our hands met in the forest, then this must be me getting electrocuted! Very reluctantly he let go again, and I could almost see him physically restrain himself from touching his own lips. He persevered, though.

He threw me a dashing smile a jogged down the street. He had only run a few meters when he turned around and ran backwards, to wave at me. "I'll see you around, Anna."

"See you around," I responded, feeling a giddy smile spread on my lips. I couldn't help but stand there and watch him until he was out of view – something I hadn't done in a while. I laughed at myself at the silliness, but winced as my wound throbbed once again. "_Better get it_ _cleaned and dressed_," I sighed. I checked my phone's clock, and grimaced when I noticed that it was a quarter past nine. Way to make an impression on the Clearwaters (_sigh)_. Entering the house I was hit with the heavenly smell of newly brewed coffee, and I was drawn to it like a bee was drawn to a fat spring flower.

"What happened?" a voice asked me, snapping me out of my trance only half-way toward the source of the smell. I looked up and saw Leah leaning on the kitchen-island as she moved to put down her cup of coffee and newspaper and step toward me. Before I could say anything, she grabbed my injured arm and brought it up, like, five centimeters from her face. I wondered if I had hit my head when I fell, because I could swear she actually _smelled_ my arm. I also mentally frowned when I noticed she had the same high temperature that not only Seth had, but also Jacob. That was just freaky.

"Ah, well," I began, actually a bit embarrassed about the story; less than twenty-four hours here, and I'm already injured. "It's stupid, really. I was running in the woods, and this guy, Jacob, jumped out from the undergrowth and scared the hell out of me. I fell and I cut myself on a rock. It just needs to be cleaned and dressed, and then it'll be good as new." I saw her tense up when I mentioned the woods, and her eyes flashed with recognition and then narrowed when I mentioned the naked half-giant.

"That idiot," Leah muttered under her breath, it seemed more to herself than to me.

"Oh no, it's okay – really," I told her, not wanting her to get any more mad at Jacob than she obviously already was. "He apologized and escorted me back here and everything."

"Wait, wait, hold on!" Leah said as she closed her eyes in disbelief. Snapping her eyes open, she looked me straight in the eye, almost daring me to lie. "We're talking about Jacob Black here, right? Six foot seven giant, likes to walk around without any shirt on, a real mother-effing asshole?"

"Yes, his name is Jacob Black, yes he is taller than me, yes he didn't wear any shirt, but I don't know about being an asshole. After asking me rather rudely why I was in the forest, it was like a switch was turned on and he was nice." As I said this to Leah, it seemed that something dawned on her. She looked pissed, then defeated as she covered her face with her hand.

"Why the hell can't just one girl I meet not…" she muttered, and I didn't catch the last part.

"I'm sorry?"

"Never mind," Leah sighed. "Mom is at the Diner. I'll take you there when you've cleaned up and got that wound dressed – we'll get breakfast there. The first-aid kit is in the bathroom upstairs."

"The Diner?"

"Ma co-owns it – or I guess it's just owns it now," Leah said offhandedly as she let go of my arm and went back to her coffee. "Hurry a bit and we can get there before the morning rush sets in." It wasn't said harshly, but not exactly friendly either. I had a hard time reading Leah; she didn't seem like a mean girl, but she seemed to not give a second thought on throwing a punch. But, as Seth had told me, she had been through some shit lately.

"Sure," I told her, not taking offense. "I just need a quick shower, then dressing the wound, and then dressing myself. I'll be down in fifteen minutes tops." Leah grunted at my response, already taking another sip of coffee and deeply concentrating on the newspaper. I didn't waste a moment and was quickly upstairs in my room, trying to figure out what to wear for the day. From what I had seen, it would be relatively warm, and the sun would be out… so I opted for a loose-fitting green off the shoulder t-shirt, which covered my right shoulder but left my left shoulder visible, and some light-brown khaki shorts which reached me mid-thigh.

Quickly grabbing the two items from my closet, alongside a white strapless bra and a pair of white panties, I entered the bathroom for the second time today. Since I only had to wash the sweat off, it didn't take long, and I was in and out in about four minutes. After having dried myself off I grabbed the first-aid kit and wrapped the wound (which was not bleeding anymore) and put on my clothes. I sprayed a light layer of perfume behind my ears and threw my hair into its usual low pony-tail, pulling it over my right shoulder. I was about to exit the bathroom when the two bottles with my medicine caught my eye.

"Oh, right," I sighed and grabbed them. Taking three pills (they were rather small) from one of the bottles, and a single pill (which was bigger than the three other pills put together) from the other bottle, I put them into my mouth with a grimace and took a big gulp of water from the faucet and swallowed. "Urgh," it came from me as I shuddered. I really hated taking the pills, but it was necessary to decrease the risk of getting a relapse. It sucked to say the least. I grabbed the sweaty clothes I had run in and hurried into my room, tucking them with the dirty clothes from earlier (I really had to get a laundry basket), and went over to my desk and grabbed my necklace and wristwatch and put them on. I quickly decided on some black strap-sandals which reached my ankle. The last thing I did before leaving was grab my wallet and put it into my pocket – a habit I had; you never knew when you would need it, for whatever reason.

"Okay, I'm ready," I said as I jumped over the last step of the staircase.

"Great, then let's get going. I'm starving," Leah said putting down the paper, walking over to a small table and grabbing her keys, all without glancing my way as she walked out the front door. I was only a few steps behind her. She unlocked the car, it was some sort of old SUV, and got in behind the wheel. Only when I sat beside her on the front seat did she glance at me. She frowned, "You do know we're not going to a ball or anything, don't you?"

"What?" I asked, totally lost.

"Your outfit, it's just very… nice."

"It's what I normally wear," I told her, getting a bit worried. "I can go try find something else if..."

"No, never mind. Let's just get going before I die of starvation," Leah said with a shake of her head, while she turned on the ignition. No, I just couldn't read Leah. She didn't talk for the rest of the ride, which was rather awkward as it lasted about twenty minutes. Other than the laundry-basket, I had to remember to ask Sue if there was a bicycle shop anywhere in La Push or Forks. The town of La Push wasn't that big and it would be easy to get around on a bike and Forks wasn't that far away either. Port Angeles I didn't think I'd be cycling to. I was pretty sure that if I wanted to go to Port Angeles it would be to go to the movies or to shop or something like that – and then it wouldn't be very nice to have a long ride home. I didn't doubt that I _could_ cycle there, it just wouldn't be practical.

I was brought out of my thoughts when Leah stopped the car in front of a cute little cafe. This was obviously 'The Diner'. It was really… American. I couldn't describe it any other words, truly, other than 'American'. I had never seen anything like it back home in Copenhagen. As we entered, a bell rang above the door, confirming my notion of how typically American the place was. There was a 'bar area' with high stools where a few patrons already sat, and there were tables by the windows which had these kind of 'sofa seats' – I think it's called a booth and benches over here. I honestly wasn't sure that those were actually the words for them, but either way I felt that this whole diner screamed 'America'. In an open corner, in view of the whole diner, there was a small stage with a microphone, speakers, and a guitar. Behind the long counter there was a window out to the large kitchen, where I saw Sue standing over a large cooktop/griddle, her hair in a net. I was surprised by how many people were here, when you thought about how small the town was. But then again, it was Sunday morning and this might be the place to be.

"Damn it, it's already so full," Leah sighed as she rubbed her stomach. She strode over to the counter and leaned in between two cute- looking guys, completely ignoring their outburst of indignation. "Hey Ma! I'm here and I brought the Danish girl with me! Can we get something to eat?" It was yelled loudly, above all the chatter already going on. My lips twitched in amusement at being labeled as 'the Danish girl' – the twitching stopped as I realized the rest of the diner had heard it too. How could they not have? A multitude of eyes tried to locate who Leah had been talking/yelling about, and quickly settled on me. I felt my cheeks heat up. I did say that while I wasn't overly shy, I still was some.

Giving a meek wave I greeted them. "Hi. I'm Anna." They went back to their own business fast enough, most of them giving a friendly smile or wave back at me, saving me from dying of embarrassment.

"Sure honey, just sit at a table and I'll send something out to you in a moment," Sue's voice sounded from the kitchen.

"I told you not to call me honey in public," Leah grumbled to herself, grabbing my hand and towing me over to a table. A large table. Like, it could house a small kindergarten large. "The guys will be here soon," she grumbled. Yes, she grumbled; she didn't seem very enthusiastic about 'the guys'. As that was the case, I decided to just sit down across from Leah, without asking the question – who are 'the guys'? After three minutes, I couldn't take the silence anymore.

"So…" I started awkwardly. Leah, who had previously been looking out of the window in a bored manner, focused her attention to me. "Where's Seth this morning?"

"He had a shift at the job we work – the same job Jake has."

"Oh, you both work at the neighborhood-watch?" I asked, trying to get a conversation going. I was going to live with this young woman, so I might as well try to get to know her. And she seemed nice enough, if you ignored her moments of rudeness and her cynic view on everything living.

"Neighborhood-watch?" she snorted. "Sure, that's where we work," she answered in a bored tone, before going back to watching out of the window. And that was it. I tried again.

"What do you do in the neighborhood-watch?"

"What people in neighborhood-watches do; keep people safe. Keep gangs out of La Push, make sure stupid people don't wander carelessly into the woods, things like that." She didn't look at me this time, which caused me to frown slightly. But I wasn't going to give up so easily.

"What do people do around here for fun?"

"Watch paint dry," she said with a sneer evident in her voice. After a second she sighed exasperated and turned away from the apparently very interesting window and toward me with a plastered smile, which she seemed to make a real effort to keep up. "There really isn't much to do in La Push. We go to the beach, we go cliff-diving, we go surfing and some go kayaking. Most of the teenagers here go the High School for all kinds of clubs. Otherwise you can go to Forks, though it doesn't have much more to offer than La Push, or Port Angeles. Port A is usually a weekend-trip, though, where you spend the whole day there, going to the movies and going shopping and such. And if you _really_ want a trip, you take a tour to Seattle."

"Sounds nice," I said with a smile. She still had hers plastered on her face, and I chuckled. "Leah, you don't have to smile for my sake. I'm perfectly fine if you're not one of those happy-go-lucky people."

"Thank fucking God," Leah said as the plastered smile fell off her face. I did spot a small smirk where the smile had been, though. "You know, you might not be half bad, Danish Girl." I smiled at the compliment, but didn't get to answer. That was the moment our food arrived. The amount was staggering and I could feel my eyes bulge out of their sockets. If it had been a cartoon, my jaw would have hit the floor with a resounding bang. The food covered the _whole _table – you know, the 'you-could-house-a-small-kindergarten-table'. The breakfast consisted of poached, fried, boiled and scrambled eggs, a few dozen large sausages, bacon enough to feed a whole village, and four large towers of pancakes (or did they call them flapjacks here?) covered with butter and some sticky substance I was guessing was syrup. Of beverages there were two kinds of juice (by the smell and look of one I could tell it was orange juice), more coffee, and chocolate milk.

"How are we going to eat all this!?" I sputtered. Growing up in the foster-care system with limited money, I was really into not wasting stuff. There was just no way we could eat all this! And yes, I was taking into account that a couple of her friends would be here too, but unless she invited the whole damn senior class, I couldn't see how there would be nothing going to waste.

"Relax! Geez, the guys will be here in a moment," Leah said while rolling her eyes, already tearing into the food.

"But..."

"Really, don't worry! We'll eat everything. You'll be lucky if you get enough to be satisfied."

I gave her a skeptical look, which she simply waved away. I _really_ didn't believe her, but let it go and started filling up my plate. I hadn't had anything to eat all day, and after a run – including the scare by the Friendly Giant – and after having been up for hours now, my stomach was really starting to growl. So I started filling my plate; taking a boiled egg, hoping it was hard-boiled, a small portion of scrambled egg, two pieces of bacon, and peeled a pancake from the top of one of the towers. It looked really, really, nice… but I hadn't eaten a breakfast without a piece of fruit ever.

"Excuse me," I asked as one of the waitressed passed. "Would you perhaps have an apple, preferable green? And a cutting knife?"

"Sure, just one moment miss," the waitress replied. I bit down a laugh, but Leah caught it.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing," I shrugged. "You're just very formal over here," I answered. "Is it true that you also address your teachers by their last name?"

"You don't?" Leah asked surprised, stopping eating for a moment. "What do you call them then?"

"By their first name, of course," I answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. And it was to me; I found it really strange that the teachers weren't called by their first name. It only estranged the students and teachers, in my opinion. "Well, we do in lower primary school and upper secondary school. I don't know about the Universities, as there is less interaction between the student and teacher, and the education is based more on lectures than face-to-face teaching."

"Huh." And then she went back to eating. I rolled my eyes at her antics.

"Here's your apple, miss," the waitress said as she appeared at the table with a nice-looking apple in her hand and a small knife.

"Thank y-" I was cut off as the door to the diner flew open, and a horde of half-naked giants, and two girls who looked very small standing beside them, poured in. I was surprised when I spotted Seth and the Friendly Giant from this morning. I tensed up slightly when first one of them spotted the table where Leah and I were sitting and then, as a group, the rest of them dropped their gazes on me. As one they quickly approached, and were soon standing by the table, the waitress long gone. There were eight of them, and the guys all looked like brothers, down to the way they dressed. None of them wore any shirts, and had only cutoffs and shoes on. They were all very tall, a few of them easily being a couple of inches taller than me – though only Jacob and one of the other guys stood tall over me. The girls were each holding hands with their own friendly giant, and I couldn't help but think amusedly how lucky they were. I certainly had something to talk to Julie about once I got a hold of her. Talk about eye-candy.

That's when I saw that Jacob was looking at me in the same way he had this morning; pure awe and wonder. It confused me just as much as it had then. I must admit that while it caused butterflies to flutter around my stomach and up my throat, it also freaked me very much out.

"Hey, who's the redhead?" one of them asked, pointing at me. The pointing really wasn't necessary, since I was the only redhead nearby; hell; I was the only redhead in the Diner.

"Anna," Jacob sighed in answer, his voice still laced with the same emotions that shone in his eyes.

"Hello Jake," I greeted him as I would any stranger I had only met.

"How do you know each other?" the same guy who had pointed out the only redhead in the diner asked.

"He assaulted her in the forest," one of the guys with a girl wrapped around his hand snickered. The girl wouldn't stand for it – though a smile graced her lips – and she slapped him lightly on his chest.

"Be nice, Jared."

"Sorry," the guy, Jared, said meekly.

"Whipped," another one coughed, which caused the rest of 'the guys' to laugh. Loudly.

"Seriously, introduce yourself to the girl!" it came from an irate Leah.

"PMS-ing again, huh Leah?" one of them teased. I frowned as I saw Leah's jaw tense. And PMS-ing wasn't something to joke about, in my opinion. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Jacob slap the back of the guy's head, while… growling? Freaky. "What the hell, Jake!?" The rest of them seemed just as surprised.

"Leah is right; introduce yourselves."

He rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'm Quil."

"Jared," Jared introduced himself. "And this is my girlfriend, Kim."

"Hi," Kim waved at me with a shy smile, not letting go of that hand. She had a wide face, mostly cheekbones, with eyes too small to balance them out. She was beautiful, but not in the same way that Leah was. Her nose and mouth were both too broad for traditional beauty. Her black hair wasn't as silky as I'd seen on some of the other Quileute people, but was more thin and wispy. Her skin was gorgeous, though, and the shape of her lips and her long eyelashes were certainly something to be envied, if just a little bit.

"Embry here," the guy next to Jake nodded, also a bit shyly. I was excited to see that he actually seemed taller than me by a few inches.

"I'm Sam, and this is my fiancée Emily," Sam introduced himself and the girl – excuse me -, _woman_, by his side.

"Hello, it's so nice to meet you," Emily greeted me in a melodic voice. Now, Emily was what I would describe as a 'traditional beauty'! She was extremely beautiful with exotic good looks, glossy black hair and copper skin. The only blemish she had was three long scars on the right side of her face, from her hairline to her chin, that pulled on her eye and the right side of her mouth, making it seem like she grimaced slightly. But she wore them with pride and without shame, which only made her look even more beautiful to me. She wasn't just a pretty face; she was a warrior who had gone through something dark.

"Hello," I greeted them. "And hello Seth. Come sit," I told him, knowing that if he did not sit there, Jake would. And a nice as Jake was, I couldn't take much more of that awkward starring.

"Hey, Annie!" Seth greeted me happily as he accepted the seat beside me (I didn't miss the glare Jacob sent him or the disappointed face the glare changed into after only a second). "How is your wrist? Jake said you cut it on a rock."

"Just Anna, please," I told Seth friendly but firmly, to which he nodded. The only one I let call me Annie is Cassie. Not even Julie or Martin called me that, just like they didn't call Kazewa, Cassie."And it was actually on my forearm, and it's just fine," I told him, showing him my bandaged left forearm. "See?"

"I'm really sorry," Jacob's voice was low and he sounded so devastated.

"Don't think about it," I told him with a chuckle. "What is one of your sayings? No harm, no foul?"

"Well, there isn't exactly 'no harm'," Quil teased. I rolled my eyes.

"Well, then let's change it around a bit; No _lasting_ harm, no foul, all right? I'm fine, and I didn't have to have it stitched up or anything. Seriously, it stopped bleeding before we were back at the house."

"Sure, sure," Jacob finally gave in though reluctantly. He sat down beside Leah (which she raised an eyebrow at), which placed him half across from me, sending a small glare or pout at Seth. With him sitting down, the rest of them sat on the remaining seats. There wasn't enough room on the sofa seats, but Quil and Embry simply went behind the counter quickly, finding two chairs. I was surprised they were allowed to go behind there, but none of the staff said anything about it. The whole lot had only sat down for a few seconds before they tore into the food with even more ferocity than Leah. Hell, compared to the guys, Leah looked like she was eating with the Queen of Denmark. I was relieved to notice that I wasn't the only one who ate like a normal person, when I saw Sam and Jared secure a meager amount of food for Emily and Kim – well, the amount was meager compared to their own. Suddenly it wasn't so hard to believe Leah that there wasn't going to be any food going to waste. I shook my head in disbelief as I started peeling my apple (making it in one go to my satisfaction) and cutting it into boats. Finally I could actually start eating.

The conversation flowed freely over the meal, and I was surprised that they actually made an effort to keep me in it. I had just expected them to ask me a question here and there, as to not make me feel completely abandoned and obsolete, but no; they actually wanted to hear stories from my childhood (which I edited a bit, as I didn't want a pity party for Anna at the moment), and wanted to know about me in general. In return, they shared stories from their childhood, how they had all come to know each other through their job in the neighborhood-watch; which, I was surprised to learn, was sponsored by the Quileute Council of Elders, and generally told me of their likes and dislikes and things such as that. It was a pleasant surprise, as I hadn't expected to meet people I could _somehow_ call friends, or at least acquaintances, on my second day here.

Some time after Emily, Kim, and I had finished our meal, but with the others still going at it strong, I let it slip that I played the guitar and piano, and that I wrote songs. I could see they didn't really believe me, and I couldn't let that happen; I loved music, and I wrote songs like others wrote diaries or journals. Seeing as it was almost twenty to twelve – I had been surprised that the time had sped by so quickly – and the morning rush was over, and there was still a good half hour before the lunch rush would settle in, there were only two other tables occupied in the diner at the moment.

"Let me prove it to you, then," I told Quil in particular, who had been the one most vocal about his disbelief in my musical talents. I had some trouble getting out of seat, since I was sitting innermost, but I soon scooted out. Sue was taking a break by now and I walked over to her, feeling the eyes of the others on me. "Sue, do you mind if I use the stage for a song?"

"You play?" she asked surprised.

"Privately, mostly," I admitted. "The others don't believe me, so I have to prove myself, you know."

"Sure, go ahead," she allowed with a smile. "The guitar might be out of tune, though – it's been a while since anyone's used the stage."

"No problem!"

I stepped up to the stage and started to tune the guitar – it wasn't too bad out of tune – and Sue turned on the microphone. I put the guitar strap over my shoulder and stepped up to the microphone, tapping it lightly to check if it was on. It was.

"All right, here we go," I said into the mic, catching the attention of the two other tables (the eyes of Seth, Leah, and their friends had been on me all along). "I wrote this song a couple of years ago, and it's still dear to my heart. I hope you'll be able to relate to it as much as I did. The song is named 'Let it go'," I told them, brushing my bangs away from my eyes. Taking a deep breath, I started playing the guitar and sang into the microphone.

"Let it go, let it go

Can't hold it back anymore

Let it go, let it go

Turn my back and slam the door

The snow blows white on the mountain tonight

Not a footprint to be seen

A kingdom of isolation and it looks like I'm the queen

The wind is howling like the swirling storm inside

Couldn't keep it in

Heaven knows I tried

Don't let them in, don't let them see

Be the good girl you always have to be

Conceal, don't feel, don't let them know

Well now they know

Let it go, let it go

Can't hold it back anymore

Let it go, let it go,

Turn my back and slam the door

And here I stand

And here I'll stay

Let it go, let it go

The cold never bothered me anyway

It's funny how some distance makes everything seem small

And the fears that once controlled me can't get to me at all

Up here in the cold thin air I finally can breathe

I know I left a life behind but I'm too relieved to grieve

Let it go, let it go

Can't hold it back anymore

Let it go, let it go,

Turn my back and slam the door

And here I stand

And here I'll stay

Let it go, let it go

The cold never bothered me anyway

Standing frozen in the life I've chosen

You won't find me, the past is so behind me

Buried in the snow

Let it go, let it go

Can't hold it back anymore

Let it go, let it go,

Turn my back and slam the door

And here I stand

And here I'll stay

Let it go, let it go

The cold never bothered me anyway."

As the last tone rang through the diner, there was complete silence. And then the applause broke out; everyone was clapping. The loudest was coming from the table where my new friends sat, but the other two tables was applauding as well. The three kitchen staff, and the waitress and waiter had also stopped what they were doing, and stood clapping. I blushed at the attention, but curtseyed, put the guitar in its stand, and got down from the stage.

"That was awesome!" Seth exclaimed as I approached the table – he even went as far as picking me up in a bone-crushing hug. A loud growl rolled through the Diner, and I tensed up – and so did Seth. He quickly put me down with a apologetic smile .I patted him on the shoulders.

"That's good, Seth," I laughed.

"Sorry," he smiled at me.

"He's right you know," Emily told me from her seat. "That was incredible. You wrote the song yourself?"

"Yeah, when I was fourteen I think."

"How old are you now?" Embry asked. I smiled at the guy who I had learned was rather shy – or at least a whole lot shier than the rest of 'the Pack' as they called themselves.

"I turned eighteen the twentieth of May. So it's about four years ago I wrote it."

"Wow, I could never write a song," Kim told me. "And if I did, it would suck."

"My first couple of songs also sucked," I laughed, "hard. Like anything else it takes practice. And my best songs always come from personal experiences."

"Damn, it's almost twelve," Jared said. "Great song, Anna, but Quil, Embry and I have to go now. We have a shift at work."

"Yeah, and if we're late Paul is going to throw a shitfest of a tantrum," Quil rolled his eyes.

"Paul?" I asked.

"Oh, didn't we mention him?" Sam asked surprised. "He is the last one of our group."

"He's a manwhore of an asshole," Leah told me with a smirk.

"Yeah, well…" Embry said, not having a comeback for that. "Come on Jared, Quils."

"We should get going too," Sam said, referring to himself and Emily. "I have some Council business to attend to, and didn't you have something you had to bake for the High School for school start?"

"Yes, they wanted some pies to serve first day in the cafeteria," Emily answered. And like that, we all exited the diner. I bid Sue goodbye, and Jacob followed my example – and as he did, so did most of the others. Soon it was just Jacob, Leah, Seth and I standing outside.

"Do you want to come hang with us?" Jacob asked hopefully, the others standing a few meters away, just out of hearing range.

"I would love to, but I'm still pretty tired after the flight," I told him honestly. "And I still have to get ready for school tomorrow. But I'll see you there, won't I?" I cringed mentally at the hopelessly hopeful sound in my question. I couldn't even control my own actions when he was near; one moment he freaked out, and the other moment… well, frankly I wanted to jump him right here and now.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," he told me. And, unbelievable, I actually believed it. That he literally wouldn't want to miss it for the world.

"Great then," I said and took his hand in mine and squeezed it. "I'll see you tomorrow then."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Phew, that was a long chapter (like the last). I hope you liked a bit of the Jacob/Anna in this chapter. And just to clear it up; no, Seth doesn't have a crush on Anna (he is crushing on Bella as far as I know), but he likes her rather much. As a friend. Kind of. It's complicated.

The song in this chapter is 'Let it Go' by Demi Lovato.

Until Next time!


	3. First Day of School Jitters

**Disclaimer;** I do not own any of the setting or characters in the story, other than the OC's. All rights are reserved for Stephenie Meyer.

_**The One for Me**_

**Summary:** I had never counted on finding my second half when I applied to the exchange-program, and moved to La Push for a year. I wasn't actively looking for a boyfriend or love, but just tried to be happy. But now there's this rather insistent guy, and he is so sweet and caring, and everything I want in a boyfriend – and I daresay a husband. But he is also secretive, and he has a bit of a temper, and keeps changing from hot to cold. That said, you have to take the bitter with the sweet… could he truly be The One for Me? Jacob/OC story. Mostly OC POV. Post-NM, pre-EC.

**Chapter Three:** First Day of School Jitters

* * *

"_This is __**so**__ not funny!"_ I almost screamed hysterically at Cassie's borderline-mocking face, trying to remind myself that there were others in the house - and that it was unlikely they had been up for a little over an hour by this time. "_This is not anything like meeting the Clearwaters for the first time; this is meeting my __**entire**__ year – the entire school in fact! – for the first time, and getting branded! This is a __**small**__ town, it's not like Copenhagen! The whole school is two-hundred students at most, not the thousand students that were in our old school! Word goes around as fast as a cat at a fish-market, and I will not be branded as the weird Danish girl!"_

"_Sorry, sorry_," Cassie apologized. "_It's just so rare that you freak out; you're normally so calm and collected, and, what is it you proudly declare? Oh yeah; you work on logic. What you're doing now, and to some extent what you did while you were packing… well, there is nothing remotely logical about that. Just try to relax, sit down and take a deep breath: everything is going to be fine._" I looked up at Cassie, really trying not to cry – which would be really stupid to do in this situation.

"_I miss you so much. I wish that you were here to give me a hug_," I told him with a slight sniffle. Then laughed, "_Oh god I sound like one of those girly girls, don't I?_"

Cassie threw me a smile full of the love he held for me. "_Sweetie, it's perfectly all right for you to sound like one of those girls when you're halfway around the globe. But you're freaking out over nothing, I promise you; they're going to love you for being you. I do, and so do Martin and Julie. We wouldn't want you to change for the world. The people there will soon feel the exact same way about you._"

I sat down on the edge of my bed with a sigh. "_I know that, I really do. But this is big, you know? And I'm not like you, Cassie. You've always been popular at first sight – me? Not so much. When you enter a new classroom the girls practically throw themselves at you. The only thing that has ever been thrown at me when I enter a classroom is a dictionary – and the extended, extra-thick version at that."_

"_That happened only once."_

"_Twice,"_ I corrected him with a wry smile. "_And I got a concussion because of it the second time and missed three days of school._"

"_That won't happen a third time_," he tried to assure me. I wasn't so sure; with my luck I would probably be hit by a chair or table. But knowing that Cassie wouldn't give up before I stopped arguing that the day would go bad, I settled for sighing. "_I hope that was a 'Cassie is right as always' sigh, and not a 'I just want you to shut up, so I'm going to keep thinking that the day will go badly and not say it' sigh._"

"_Whatever you say_," I laughed lightly at him. I looked over at the clock and saw that it was twenty to seven, and that the Clearwaters would most likely be up, or were soon going to be. Seth was, anyway, if he was going to school today. I didn't know what Leah was doing other than working in the neighborhood-watch, nor did I know if Sue had to work this morning at the diner. In any case, it was about time I exited my room and went downstairs. "_I'll have to go now…"_

Cassie sighed heavily. "_I guess so. You know, before you left I didn't think it would be this hard._"

"_Me either, but we'll get used to it soon enough. I love you, and we'll talk soon,_ _okay?_" I asked him, trying to put up a brave face.

Now, before you tell me I'm too girly, and I should just get it over with, try to remember just how close Cassie and I are. It was at least two years since I hadn't gone two days without speaking with him. Now that I was here in the US, and with the time difference, it was very likely we could go days without speaking – and there was the factor that both of us _knew_ it wasn't easy talking. For as long as I can remember, we had each always been only a phone call away, and we would drop whatever we were doing to be whatever the other needed us to be. Things had changed, and would continue to be so for at least a year.

"_Love you too,_" he said with a sad smile, and then turned off the video chat. I sat on my bed for a few seconds breathing heavily before I stood up and went out of my room. I tiptoed because it was still relatively early and quickly snuck into the bathroom to take my medicine, since I'd already showered and gotten ready minutes after I awoke. Why did I wake up at twenty till six? Well, it's a habit I developed in the group home, and one I hadn't gotten rid of yet (though I wasn't sure I wanted to get rid of it). I was usually the first one up to help whoever was in the kitchen make food for the other children, and to read up on anything we would be doing in class that day. I was usually also the last one to go to bed because of how much I studied, and I made sure that the new children at the home were comfortable. Cassie had questioned my sanity several times because I slept so little; he just couldn't fathom it, since he could sleep close to twelve hours in a row. That was something _I _couldn't fathom.

I swallowed my pills, and shuddered at the feeling. I took a calming breath, not unlike the one I had taken in the bathroom at the airport, and scrutinized myself in the mirror. Since the sky was overcast today and it would be considerably colder than yesterday, I had decided to go with a slightly warmer outfit. I was wearing a nice-looking blue shirt, with the sleeves rolled up just above my elbows, and the buttons open not to be too warm. Because the buttons were open you could see the top of my thin black blouse I wore underneath, which stopped just below the top of my breast – this gave a slight view of my cleavage, but not anything near what would be considered slutty. The blue shirt's lower hem was shoved down in my dark blue, almost black, tight jeans, which had a row of decorative buttons by the front pockets. I even had the perfect shoes to go with; a pair of sneaker-lookalikes with three centimeter heels on. Also, because I was so nervous, I had put a light layer of makeup on; mascara to bring out my eyes, a _very_ light layer of eye shadow, and red lipstick. My hair was put in its usual low ponytail that swung over my right shoulder, and rested softly on my chest and reached just about to my waist. And of course I wore the necklace and wristwatch gifted by Cassie – I never went anywhere without them.

I sighed one last time before I tiptoed downstairs. There was no one about at all, so I went to the kitchen and started the coffee machine (drinking coffee was one of the reasons I was able to function with so few hours of sleep). There were two kinds of coffee; the freshly made and a kind that looked like it could be bought in any supermarket. Not knowing if it would be okay to use the fresh one Leah had brewed the day before, which I never got a taste of, sadly, I picked the lower-quality coffee. It didn't really matter _that_ much as long as it had caffeine in it. While the machine was working it's caffeine-magic, I turned to the cupboards and refrigerator trying to see if they had any soured milk products – something I usually had for breakfast on weekdays. Sadly, the Clearwaters didn't seem to have any, the closest thing I could find to soured milk was a carton of mixed berry flavored yogurt. I wrinkled my nose in minor disgust at the thought of the yogurt having any added flavors, but since there weren't any other products, and I wasn't willing to go for anything else, I settled on that. But it was certain that I needed to find the supermarket and try to get something that even resembled the Danish _Ymer_ product.

I poured the flavored yogurt in a small soup plate, and sprinkled it with a nut mix I found in one of the cupboards. By the time I had located where the utensils were and had grabbed a spoon, the coffee was done and I poured a cup, reveling in its bitter smell. Since I liked it black, I grabbed the warm mug and my plate with yogurt and spoon and went out onto the porch, sitting on the steps. I breathed in deeply the lovely and refreshing morning air, taking in all the new smells this area had. It was a big difference from Copenhagen. While my country's capital was one of the cleanest, it was still a city and had pollution – and that showed when you breathed in the morning air. Here you couldn't smell that slight tint of… well; I can't say what it was, just that it didn't _belong_. It was nice just breathing in mostly unpolluted air, and just listening to nature wake up as the sun rose up behind the forest.

That's when I heard a resounding _crack_ from the forest, and my head snapped in the direction of the border of the trees. It was hard to see anything in the early morning light, and the large, dense cover didn't help either. I couldn't locate anything between the thick trunks, but my heartbeat quickened in fear as my mind recalled the conversation I had with Jacob yesterday morning. They, the neighborhood watch, were making sure folks around here didn't wander too far into the forest because of the wolves and bears. So grabbing my empty mug and soup plate, I _very_ slowly got up from my sitting position on the steps, and without facing away from the forest, backpedaled toward the door. As soon as I felt the hard wood against my back I swirled around and hurried inside, breathing out a big sigh of relief as the door closed behind me.

"Oh," Sue's voice sounded surprised from the kitchen. I faced her and saw her by the stove, clearly cooking breakfast – and a large one at that. I almost raised my eyebrow at the amount, but soon remembered the abnormal amount of food Sue's two children consumed the day before. "Ah, you already ate breakfast."

Guilt flashed across my face, "Sorry, I didn't know you would be making...I didn't want to assume anything. I prefer a light breakfast, so I just took some yogurt and some of the nut mix. I hope you don't mind."

"Of course not," Sue smiled with motherly indulgence at me. "That just means less work for me. Seth could learn a thing or two from you." The last part was said with a laugh as she turned back to the stove, handling the frying pan and pots like a professional…which I guessed she was, her owning the diner and all. "By the way, is it you who brewed the coffee?"

"Yeah?" I half asked.

Sue smiled at me over her shoulder. "Sweetie, you don't have to worry about doing things in this house. If you ever do something you're not supposed to, I'll just say it. You seem like a very responsible young woman, so you have nothing to worry about."

"Thanks," I said as some of my tension dissipated. "I guess I just have to get used to it. What was it about the coffee?"

"You could've just used the high quality coffee. The only reason I had the other bag was because they were out of the good stuff the other day."

"It wasn't bad," I told her honestly. "But thank you. Where do you want the dishes?"

"Just put them on the table there," she said, nodding to a spot next to the sink. I did as she said. "Have you been up for long? I was just about to go up and wake you and Seth."

I leaned up against the kitchen island. "Yeah, I've been up since just after six." At her surprised look I quickly continued, "It's a habit I developed back home. I slept fine; I just like having time in the morning." The last part was a half truth. She may know that I lost my parents when I was little, but she didn't have to know that I practically mothered a lot of the children in the group home. While I wasn't ashamed of it or anything, I preferred to keep that past in the past.

"Well, it's a good habit to have," she said with a nod to herself. She turned off the stove and turned around and smiled at me. "Rather be an early riser than having trouble getting up. Speaking of which, I better get Seth up if he's going to make it."

"Right," I nodded at her as she went in the direction of the staircase. I glanced at my watch which showed it was ten minutes past seven. What I had been told was that we had to be at the school auditorium at eight twenty since it was the first day of school. Seth told me that they normally had to be in class at eight fifteen, and many were there already at eight ten. And we had to drive there – though that shouldn't take more than a few minutes, since the High School was closer than the diner. But still; Seth had to wake up, shower, get dressed, pack his school bag, and eat breakfast in a relatively short time. While I could understand that he didn't want to get up before six like me, I would've imagined him to be at least waking up before seven. Well, Sue didn't seem worried, so I wouldn't be either.

"Hey, do the animals come close to the house?" I asked Sue when she came down again three minutes later. She tensed up – barely, but it was there.

"Animals?" she asked, about to get the breakfast she had made presentable for Seth when he finally came down.

"Yeah," I nodded. "Jacob mentioned that the neighborhood-watch prevents people from wandering too far into the forest because of the wolves and bears. I was just wondering how close they got to houses and humans in general… I think I might have seen one this morning out on the porch?"

Sue froze up and turned towards me. "You _saw_ one?"

"Well, I didn't exactly _see_ anything," I admitted while my mind was going a hundred kilometers an hour trying to figure out why Sue acted the way she did. I didn't let it show though, and continued the conversation. "I was sitting on the stairs and I heard something crack, a branch or something. I didn't really stick around after that because I remembered what Jake told me about the wolves and bears."

"Oh, good," Sue sighed in relief. She glanced at me and probably spotted my frowning face. "Normally the animals stay far inside the forest and far away from us, but there was a period a couple of years ago where they started getting closer. Mind you, there haven't been any attacks in my memory, but it was a concern. Especially for mothers like me – Leah and Seth weren't that old back then."

"Oh, all right. That's good to know." Well, that _could_ explain why she acted like that, but my gut and brain told me there was more going on. But… it wasn't my place to get involved. "I'll go upstairs and pack my schoolbag," I told her, pushing away from the kitchen island in the process. I heard her saying 'sure dear' over my shoulder as I went upstairs. Upstairs Seth's door was wide open – I chuckled as I could smell that 'teenage-boy smell' waft out of the room, a smell that seemed to be in every teenage-boy's room – and the shower was on, so I quickly put together that Seth was up and about. Leah's door was still firmly shut.

I entered my room and located the brown messenger bag I had been using as a schoolbag for the last two years, and which I planned to use for as long as it held. Normally I would've packed my bag much earlier, either the evening before when I finished my homework, or in the morning just after I got dressed. Of course, it wouldn't stay completely packed if it was one of those mornings where I read up about what we were going to work on in class that day. Since I didn't have the textbooks to the different subjects, it was going to be a light packing I would be doing; two blocks of paper – one squared for math, one lines for notes – my small pencil case, my ruler (though I didn't know if I could use it, since it measured centimeters), and my collection of formulas book. By the time the bag was packed, and I had double and tripled checked it (another habit of mine), I was finally satisfied that I hadn't forgotten anything. Knowing I wouldn't be coming up here again before school let out, I also grabbed my wallet, iPhone and headphones, putting the last two articles in a small side pocket in the messenger bag.

I didn't even have to look when I came downstairs again to find out if Seth was here; I could hear him eating and talking to his mother quite loudly from the top of the stairs. I couldn't help but smile at that. Seth truly had an infectious nature that just urged you to be happy around him. He was a really nice boy that I couldn't wait to live with for a whole year. He was a sharp contrast to his sister, not that I had anything against Leah. She had her own special charm, but… Seth was Seth.

"Good morning, Seth," I greeted him as I got closer to the kitchen on my way to where the shoes were. "Did you have a good night's sleep?"

"Morning Anna, yeah I slept well- Whoa! You're hot!" Seth greeted me while eating, only to stop everything he was doing and blatantly stare at me. I felt my cheeks color slightly at the comment.

"Well, thank you – you're not half bad looking yourself," I joked with him as I grabbed my shoes and sat down on one of the chairs by the kitchen island, beside Seth. I wasn't lying about him looking good. I had already admitted that he was attractive, and it was evident by the way he dressed that Seth also knew that. Wearing the same kind of cutoffs that he and his friends seemed to like, he wore it with a tight fitting white t-shirt that really showed his muscles. To top off the ridiculous attractive picture (if you ignored the food left all over his face), his hair was still damp from his shower, and his hair was standing every which way.

"I hope you don't mind me asking, but why are you wearing heels on a weekday when you're already so high?" Seth asked of me. "I know Leah will only wear heels at a party, since if she does it on a weekday it will just point out even more how different she is." As he asked the question I was about to go on a minor rampage; I was a calm girl for the most part, and while I had accepted I was tall and that was just the way it was, I still had problems with people pointing it out. But Seth asked it so innocently, and obviously knew some of the 'tall girl' problems from his sister.

"For Leah it might make a difference if she wears three centimeters since she's only, what, one-seventy-five? One-eighty? She's on the edge of what is an 'acceptable' height for a girl," I told him, air quoting the word acceptable, showing what I thought about it. "I'm one-ninety-one centimeters tall, which I guess would be about six foot three? Three centimeters isn't going to make much of a difference to the way people look at me, and I like walking in small heels, so… yeah."

"Oh," he said as only a boy could, making me snicker. "I guess that makes sense."

"It's kinda funny, actually. My height that is," I told him, putting my elbow on the kitchen island and resting my chin on my hand. "You see, Cassie is only about one-seventy-one centimeters tall, and that was a bit shorter than any other guys who were in our year. I was by far the tallest girl; in fact, there were only two boys who were taller than me, and that was by a few centimeters. So there's Cassie and me, the lowest boy and the tallest girl, best friends and almost never seen without the other." I laughed at the memory, "We drew our fair share of odd looks."

"Well, you won't be the only tall kid at school here," Seth told me between the bites. "Well, you might be the tallest girl, seeing as you're taller than Leah. But Jake, Embry, and Jared are all taller than you. And I think Quil is about the same height as you, so Paul must be only a bit shorter than you."

"That's always something. Hey, by the way, are you in tenth grade? Erm, its called sophomore here, I think."

"No, I'm a junior," he told me with a grin. "I skipped a grade in elementary," he explained me when he saw me trying to calculate how that could be.

"Ah, that's why," I smiled at him. "There isn't much of 'skipping grades' back home. There are few exceptions, of course, but in general you're just in the class you're in." Seth scrunched up his nose at the notion.

"Denmark is weird," it came from him after about fifteen seconds of silence (or relative silence, as Seth's munching couldn't exactly be called 'quiet').

"The United States is weird," I countered with a laugh. And we bantered as such for the next while until Sue told us it was time to get going. It was seven forty when we backed out of the driveway at the Clearwaters, and the drive to the school only took us ten minutes. We had arrived early on purpose, I assure you; since it was my first day at the school, I had to go to the office at first to figure some things out and tell the administration that I was actually here. I had tried to get Sue or Seth to just tell me the directions to the school, and I would figure it out on my own so they didn't have to go to the school so early, but neither of them would have any of it. Not being a person who looks a gift horse in the mouth, I accepted it with a grateful thank you and a smile.

The school was not what I had expected – though, to be completely honest, I didn't know what to expect. My old 'High School' had been state of the art – but that was to be expected from the largest and most distinguished technical high school of Copenhagen. Funny enough, it was named 'Technical School of Copenhagen'… shocker, I know. Anyway, La Push High School was about as different from my old school as you could get. It's not that it was run down or cheap or anything like that, but…basically, it was several buildings, including a gym, which sat in a general area that had been named 'School Grounds'. The school wasn't big either. But then again; this school only had about two-hundred students – in my old school there was a bit over a thousand students.

"So, whatcha think?" it sounded from behind me as the car stopped in the mostly empty parking-lot. I looked over my shoulder to see Seth leaning forward from his seat in the back of the car, looking inquiringly at me.

"It's… something," I said as I tilted my head and leaned forward to get another angle from the car. "It's very much smaller than my old school. Not that I'm complaining or anything. That should mean that the hallways are less crowded in between lessons." I took a deep breath and turned to Seth, seeing him sitting there smiling. That, of course, caused me to smile right back. "Let's get the show on the road, eh?"

"Sure, sure," Seth laughed and grabbed his bag from the backseat. He then leaned forward and kissed Sue on the cheek. "Bye Ma, love you, see you later!"

"I love you too," Sue told her son as he exited the car.

"I'll see you this afternoon, Sue," I told the kind lady in the driver's seat, grabbing my messenger bag in the process. I gave her a smile when the bag was thrown over my shoulder. "Wish me luck."

Sue laughed kindly at the last remark. "Sweetie, you don't need luck. You'll do just fine. I'll see you later today." I nodded at her and exited. Seth and I stood and waved as Sue drove out of the parking lot again, and, if I wasn't mistaken, toward the diner. Damn it, I really needed to figure out the lay of the land soon. It killed me not knowing where the roads went. That's when I noticed the few students who had already arrived, most of whom were standing around different cars, had stopped talking and were looking at Seth and me… and if I wasn't mistaken, it wasn't the six-foot hunk they were blatantly staring at. Seth saved me from having to break out of my freeze by myself.

"I'll show you to the administration building," Seth told me and started walking toward one of the exits of the parking lot. I simply nodded and followed mutely after him, trying not to trip and look like an idiot. All the insecurities that had disappeared during the morning and banter with Seth came rushing back. Saliva filled my mouth all the time and I kept swallowing – and I was pretty sure everyone could see my throat gulping all the time. "Anna? Are you okay?" I looked up at Seth and noticed we had stopped in front of a building – which was actually some distance away from the parking lot.

"Yeah, I think so." He gave me a slightly skeptical look. I took a deep breath and smiled at him, "I'm just nervous, that's all. I'll be fine."

"If you say so," Seth shrugged. He then proceeded to point at the door, "This is the administration building; the reception desk is just inside. And don't worry about the receptionist; Cynthia is really nice and friendly… she helped a ton after dad died, when I missed a lot of school." Sorrow was suddenly the dominating feature in Seth's face, and I had to remind myself that it was only months ago that he had lost his father. It wasn't like me who had had a decade to get used to the idea of never talking to a parent again – and I still had trouble sometimes. I put a hand on his arm, offering him my support. He glanced at me with unshed tears in his eyes and gave me a small smile. "Thanks."

"No problem," I assured him before I turned my eyes back on the building in front of us. "So I'll guess I'll see you later?"

"Yeah, sure." He walked a few steps away before turning around – by this time I had only just put my hand on the door handle. "Why don't you sit with us at lunch?"

"Us?"

"Yeah, us; me and the guys. Jake will be there too," he told me with a grin. If I didn't know better I would say it was a knowing grin, but that would be stupid; I had met Jake twice. He was just a guy and I was just a girl. For all I knew he could be gay. Though that would be too bad, really…

"Sure," I told him. At least I wouldn't have to worry about sitting alone at lunch – now I only had to worry about making a complete fool of myself and shaming everything I stood for. He bid me goodbye and left me standing alone outside of the administration building. I glanced at my watch; seven fifty-five. The stuff in the auditorium started in twenty-five minutes. Realizing that I better get going if I wanted a good seat in the very likely small auditorium, I gathered my courage and pushed into the office building. Gosh, if I had trouble entering the office building, then how would it be to enter the first couple of classrooms, where I was ninety-nine percent sure the teachers would have me present myself in front of class. Oh joy – and please note the sarcasm.

Entering the room two things hit me (and neither of them was a dictionary). The reception was a small room, and it was filled with a perfume. I grimace and almost gagged at the smell, but managed to hold it down. The dominating feature of the room was a medium-sized table with an old computer and stacks upon stacks of papers, placed as such so the person who sat behind the table and computer could see who entered the room. Beside the door, along the walls, was a row of chairs, which I guessed was for people who had to wait to enter the office. The person that sat behind table, currently typing fervently on the computer, was a pretty looking woman in her early to mid thirties, if I were to guess. She had the silky hair and golden skin tone that all Quileute seem to possess, her hair being worn in a knot that screamed authority. She wore glasses which were currently halfway down the bridge of her nose, but she seemed too busy with the computer to actually bother to push them up again. It didn't take me long to figure out it was her that the potent perfume was originating from. Maybe it was on purpose, to make the students not want to spend time in the reception before talking to the principal? Or maybe it was just a coincidence.

I cleared my throat – she didn't react. I cleared my throat once again, this time a little louder – still no reaction. "Excuse me?" I finally said, and her head finally snapped up to look at me.

"Yes?"

"Erm, I'm Anna – Anna-Marie Davidsen. I'm a new student," I told her, not having moved from my spot two steps into the room.

"Ah, Anna-Marie!" she said as her eyes flashed with recognition at the mention of my name. "The exchange student from Denmark, yes?"

"That's me," I said with a friendly smile. "I was told I needed to see someone in the office before I started my classes… so here I am."

"Great," she said to me and began looking through the papers she had. "Now where is it…? Ah, here!" she brought out a small folder and took out a small book, which she handed it to me. "Now, this is your student's handbook – it should answer many questions that new students have. And if you have any questions that it doesn't answer, please don't hesitate to ask any of the staff or students for help." She looked down in the folder, "Now, your locker-number is one-hundred-and-thirty-eight, and the combination is twenty-one, oh-seven, forty-three. Since it's your first day here, I'll need you to get your teachers to sign these slips," she told me and handed me a few small pieces of paper. "And here is a map of the school," she said as she handed me another small piece of paper. "Now, because you're already of age you and not your parents need to sign this contract," she told me and handed me another piece of paper. I was relieved it wasn't one of those five page long contracts where you needed to sign several places – it was just a single page. Being the responsible girl I was, I read the page carefully – after all, I wouldn't want to sign anything I didn't agree with.

I could sign this with ease in mind, however; it just was just a contract that I would respect other students and the teachers, that I would participate in class and not skip, that I wouldn't dress inappropriately – which including displaying any sexual, drug, gang, or violent themes (I own no clothes of that description, most fortunately). The school also seemed to be rather modern; instead of completely banning the display of affection, the paragraph about it simply said that I wouldn't 'push it in other's faces', and that it shouldn't disrupt classes. Also, instead of all electronic devices being turned off the whole school day, it was just required that the devices were turned off during lessons and announcements. In addition to that the contract also had some rather positive 'rules' that they asked the students to live – or strive – to obey. They were; be respectful and polite at all times. Have a positive attitude about myself and my school. Respect the rights of my peers to learn and my teachers to teach. Strive to reach my goals. Be a leader, not a follower. Be proud of my school, my community and of myself. Come prepared to learn. Treat others in the way I'd like to be treated. Never give up. It was all something I could agree with, so I happily signed the paper.

I handed in the paper to Cynthia, who seemed quite pleased that I had actually read the contract and not just signed it. As she put the contract into the folder, which, by this time, I had figured was a folder about me, she continued speaking. "And that's really it. As I said, don't hesitate to ask any questions you might have. We're a small school, but that also means we have a closer relationship to each of the students here."

"That's nice," I told her sincerely. It would be different to be in a school where almost everyone knew each other. I kept getting reminded how different it would be to go here compared to go in my old High School. It would be a good experience for me. "Erm, where do I get my schedule?"

"You'll get that in Homeroom," she said absentmindedly as she sorted through some of the papers. She then looked up at me and possibly saw my totally lost expression. "You don't know what Homeroom is, do you?" I shook my head in affirmation. "There's a Homeroom for each grade here; one of the freshmen, one for the sophomores, one for the juniors, and finally one for the seniors – that's you," she told me carefully. "It will be the first place you meet each morning, normally in the same classroom always, and there your Homeroom teacher will announce things that concern your year – like distributing schedules, make sure everyone knows the exam and mock-exam dates, etcetera etcetera. It lasts ten minutes, and then the group would break up into three or four groups depending on the year, and go to their respective classes which will start five minutes after Homeroom ends. But that's on normal days; here on first day of school we'll have a welcome speech and major announcements in the auditorium from the principal. That will most likely take an hour, and should end around ten minutes past nine, during which he will tell which classroom the different years will have Homeroom in. The different years will then go the designated classroom, and the Homeroom will last until recess at a quarter past ten. The rest of the day will then proceed like normal."

"That's a lot of information," I blurted out, trying to get a hold of it all. Cynthia laughed goodheartedly.

"Yeah, it is. But don't worry, honey; you'll get used to it soon enough," she told me with a friendly smile. "Now you should go to the auditorium if you want a good seat." After a pause she added, "The Auditorium is building E – it sits across the grounds, on the other side of the parking lot."

"Thank you," I told her and put everything but the map into my bag. "Have a good day."

"You too, dear," Cynthia said. Then she turned back to her computer and started typing just as fervently as she had been doing when I had arrived. I didn't glance her way again as I exited the building. Standing with the door at my back I looked down at the map. The school consisted of six buildings, each designated a letter. Building A, which housed Administration, building B, which housed Classrooms and the Teacher's Lounge, building C, which housed the different laboratories, building D, which housed the cafeteria, building E, which was the auditorium, and building F, which was a gymnasium. The buildings were placed as such that building A was closest to building B, which sat between building A and C, and so on. Now that I had a map it actually didn't look as chaotic as I first had thought it was. The only difference between my old school and this was that it was smaller, and was split up into different buildings instead of floors.

It only took me five minutes to get to the auditorium from the administration building, and I wasn't even walking fast. Yet another concern of mine was dismissed – that I would have to hurry like hell between different subjects to get to the next classroom. The auditorium was larger than I had expected – perhaps it was also used for performances, and thus needed room for more than just the student body. There was a stage which was at a drop of height compared to the seats, which kept elevating each row slightly until it reached the aisle between the last row and the wall. About a fifth of the seats were taking by chatting and laughing students, possibly greeting each other after not having seen each other for months. For a moment I felt a sharp sorrow in my heart at being so far away from Cassie, Julie, and Martin.

I missed my friends from back home a lot… Martin and Julie would have started on the Technical University two weeks ago, and I couldn't wait to hear their impression of it. I needed to call them soon, so they didn't feel like I'd forgotten them. Of course they understood why I talked to Cassie more, but that didn't mean that he could replace them in any way. While Cassie would talk 'girl' with me, it wasn't the same as when I talked to Julie. And Martin always had his special point of view on things, never losing his cool. I missed them _all_, but, of course, I missed Cassie the most. It was very stupid when I talked to him this morning. But I missed being physically close to him, sitting on the couch with him watching a movie, waking up in the same room as him, his smell, his laugh. It sounds very romantic and all, but all the things about him calm me.

I shook the solemn thoughts from my head and started walking down the aisle to get a seat in one of the front rows. Since I didn't know anyone who was already seated, I sat about halfway down the third row. Looking at my watch I realized there were still fifteen minutes till the whole shebang would start, so I brought out my student's handbook. I could just as well use the time here getting familiar with the school rules and guidelines instead of playing a game on my iPhone or twiddling my thumbs. The book wasn't exactly what you could call thin, but I could see it wasn't over fifty pages. And since it was a student's handbook to High School, in my head it would also have a lot of pictures and illustrations – though that was still left to be proven.

There were a couple of interesting things in the book. One thing that really caught my eye was the important dates and holidays. Like homecoming week early in November – there was nothing like 'homecoming' back in Denmark, at least not anything that resembled what little I knew of the American homecoming… thingy. Of course the marked days were also different; Veteran's Day, Labor Day (which were the following Monday after the actual date), and Martin Luther King Day were all new to me, and I had only the faintest idea of what one of them 'celebrated'. And the holidays were completely different; the Thanksgiving in late November (I really was looking forward to that), the Christmas Break was called Winter Break. And they didn't have a Fall Break (though, the Thanksgiving Holidays could be seen as a shortened version of it), a 'Winter Break' in early February, nor an Easter Break in the spring. Of course, they seemed to have a much longer Summer Break, first day of school being September fifth and last day of school being June 13th. Back home school normally started around the tenth of August, and ended the twenty-eighth of June.

"Hey Anna!" a female voice greeted me and snapped my attention away from the book. I looked up to see Jared, Kim (who was again wrapped around one of Jared's arms), Quil, and Embry sitting down on my left. It was Kim who sat down beside me, "What're you doing?"

"Reading the student's handbook," I told her and raised the book to prove the point. "A lot of things are different."

"You're actually reading the handbook?" Quil asked in disbelief. "Almost nobody reads that thing! It's only geeks and kiss-asses that do that!"

"Seriously, Quil," Embry stated as he covered his face with his right hand. "Do you actually hear the words when they exit your mouth, or do you just not have a filter that picks up the complete bull that comes out?" He seemed to think I would be offended by the brand 'geek'. But that was one of the things I actually didn't mind – so I just laughed it off.

"It's all right, Embry," I told him and then looked at Quil. "You can call me a geek if you want – I'll happily accept it. Yes, I love to be prepared and do well in class. I like getting high grades and all that. So if that's what you call a geek, then I'm a geek."

"In that case, you're a really cute geek," it came from the seat to my right. I hadn't heard anyone sit down there so I almost jumped half a meter into the air. I looked to my right, a hand over my heart, and saw Jake sitting there with wide apologetic eyes, and behind him was Seth with his infectious grin. "Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you!" Jake told me.

"It's okay," I told him laughing, still trying to get control over my racing heart. "You know, both you and Seth move really quietly? Seth has done the same thing back at the house a couple of times already." I shot a half-amused-half-accusing glare at Seth at that. Now that I was sure I actually was sitting on something and wasn't midair, I had time to look Jacob over. A shiver ran up my spine at his looks; he really was a very defined young man. His muscles were bulging just the right amount, and the tight-fitting dark blue t-shirt he was wearing did nothing to hide it. At a glance I also got a look at his long legs which were hairy in just the right amount and stuck out from the cutoffs he had opted for. I looked away before he noticed me practically eye-fucking him, but I think he might have seen it anyway. There was an all too pleased grin plastered on his face. When he winked at me I knew for sure he had seen the way I had looked at him, and I slapped him lightly over the chest with the back of my hand. "Shush, you."

"I'm not saying anything," he told me grinning. I rolled my eyes, with my own soft smile playing at my lips.

"Isn't the last of your guys going to show today? Paul was his name, I believe?" I asked them, looking down the row to see if he had snuck by me without me seeing. He hadn't.

"He probably overslept. He does that a lot," Jared told with a slight frown. It was clear he didn't like it. I didn't either, but, for the umpteenth time I had to remind myself _it wasn't my place to get involved_. But I _knew_ how important school was, especially the last year of High School, and how it paved the way for the future. "Anyways," Jared started, "which subjects are you looking forward to?"

"Maths, Science, and Biology," I told them without missing a beat.

"You like Math?" Kim asked surprised.

"Love it is more accurate," I told her with a grin.

"But… why?" Quil asked, looking like he was trying to figure out the world's secrets. "Math is... evil incarnate. I'm pretty sure our Math teacher is a demon."

"That's only because you're so bad at it," Jake rolled his eyes at his friend. Then he looked at me with those deep, black, beautiful eyes of his in a way that made my inside turn to jelly. "But I must admit that I'm curious about why you like it, too."

"Well, I just love it," I told them laughing lightly. "I mean, you know when you sit with a problem, and you sit like, half an hour and just can't crack that code that needs to be cracked to solve it?" All of them nodded. "Well, I love how it challenges me, how I have to think and try to think different ways to actually get a result that makes sense. And I _love_ it when you finally crack that code, and you suddenly fly through the problems you have. It's like solving a great mystery."

"Wow," Kim said out loud. "You know, it's just really rare I get past that frustrating point where you actually crack the code. But I guess I can see why you love it so much."

"Yeah," Jake nodded. "Do you want to work with it when you get older?"

"Definitely," I answered once again without missing a beat. But before I could indulge the guys more, the principal stepped up on the stage with a microphone. He looked like your generic principal; a grey-haired, chubby, man in his fifties. He tapped the microphone three times to make sure it worked – and the beating from the speakers proved it did.

"Attention, please," he spoke out to the hall. "Please quiet down so we can get on with this." He only had to say things like that three more times before it was quiet enough to start. I sat back and listened attentively.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I had really planned on this chapter being the first day of school, but I guess we'll just have to have that in chapter four – maybe even chapter five. Anyway, don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.

Until Next Time! :)


	4. Europe or America, School is School

**Disclaimer;** I do not own any of the setting or characters in the story, other than the OC's. All rights are reserved for Stephenie Meyer.

_**The One for Me**_

**Summary:** I had never counted on finding my second half when I applied to the exchange-program, and moved to La Push for a year. I wasn't actively looking for a boyfriend or love, but just tried to be happy. But now there's this rather insistent guy, and he is so sweet and caring, and everything I want in a boyfriend – and I daresay a husband. But he is also secretive, and he has a bit of a temper, and keeps changing from hot to cold. That said, you have to take the bitter with the sweet… could he truly be The One for Me? Jacob/OC story. Mostly OC POV. Post-NM, pre-EC.

**Author's Note:** A second small disclaimer; the start of the speech is from, as far as I know, The Star Thrower Story. I didn't write it, they did. The reason I took a speech from the net and didn't just write it myself, is I couldn't come up with something half as meaningful as I think this speech is. It has made the story just the smallest bit more realistic. If you don't like, then I'm sorry.

**Chapter Four:** Europe or America, School is School

* * *

"Attention, please," the principal spoke out to the hall. "Please quiet down so we can get on with this." He only had to say things like that three more times before it was quiet enough to start. I had sat back in my seat at the first attempt at getting order, and I was listening attentively. Most of 'The Pack' also quieted down at the first or second call, but Embry and Quil (mostly Quil) just ignored and continued their special banter. It took Jared hissing at them in a weird growling voice telling them to shut up before they actually quieted down… it almost looked like they did it against their will.

"Good Morning and welcome back, students and staff, to another year at La Push High School!" the principal intoned from his place on the stage. "As this school year begins, we as educators have an enormous gift to give; the gift of enhancing the lives of our students and the gift of teaching the children of this community, of helping them grow and succeed. Because we all know that what we give them inside the classroom extends so much further than the exam at the end of the year."

I admit that as I sat there in the only half full auditorium, that my eyes grew a bit wide. I had respect for authority, and knew that while some teachers could be absolutely awesome (I had a few of them during my schooling), others were just as dull as teachers were depicted in many movies (I had more of those). So, that in mind, I hadn't really expected much from the speech, other than the resounding snorts from some of the students. But this was really something that captured my mind.

"Yes, we have standards and goals we try to achieve. It's very hard work and every year, our school does a fantastic job. But this year, let's try to take it a step further. Together, let's create a vision - for ourselves as educators, for our classrooms, and even for every individual student. This vision does not need to be a grandiose achievement. Small steps can dramatically enhance a student's learning experience. And when we do this, we will be doing all that we can to make a positive difference. I urge all of you to take action. Today, let's take the small steps needed to make our school and our community an even better place to learn, to work, and to thrive. Remember: 'Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world'." The auditorium broke out in applause. I didn't think the applause was half what the speech actually deserved. But it was as such with students; half of them didn't care enough to listen, a quarter didn't know what was being said, and the last quarter was a minority. I was in the last quarter. "Thank you, thank you," the principal said to the hall. "Now that we have the speech done, let's get on with this. To new students let me introduce myself; I'm Richard Littlesea, and I'm the principal of La Push High School. First things first, this year we have some minor changes to our staff; Mrs. Collins, our esteemed mathematics teacher, decided to retire. I think I speak for all of us when I say she will be sorely missed-"

"Yes! No more Mrs. Demon-Incarnate!" Quil cheered – just a little bit too loudly. While I was trying to hide my snickering (along with half the auditorium), Principal Littlesea shot Quil a scolding glare. "Sorry," he muttered only slightly abashed.

"As I said, she will be missed," Richard Littlesea continued, shooting another hard glare at Quil – to which the young Quileute just smiled innocently. "Mrs. Collins will be replaced by Mr. Smith; let's welcome him with a round of applause and let his stay here be pleasant." A young white man in his mid-twenties rose from his seat and waved out to the room. "Another teacher who has left us over summer is Mr. Morgan, who left us to pursue a career elsewhere. Mrs. Manders has accepted the position as our History teacher," a Quileute woman in what I would guess to be her late forties rose and another round of applause to welcome her rung through the auditorium. "Then I have a small announcement from our football coach; due to not every spot being filled, there will be an extra round of tryouts for the football team at the end of next week – a poster will be put up with the exact date and time." Jacob scoffed a laugh at that last announcement, drawing my attention from the principal to himself in the process.

I raised an eyebrow at him. "What was that about?" I whispered to him.

"It's just funny, that's all," he whispered into my ear. His breath tickled my neck making me shudder in excitement – though I hoped Jake didn't see that. "You see, the coach has tried to get several of us to join the football team for over a year now." He chuckled at that, "He has tried everything but actually paying us – which is illegal, by the way – so it's just funny. This is just another poorly hidden hint from him that he wants us to join the team. The tryouts for the football team are always two weeks before the year starts and everyone in the Pack got a letter from the coach about them. None of us showed."

"Why does the coach want you guys on the team so much?" I asked him.

This caused Jake to look incredulously at me. "Are you serious? I mean, haven't you seen how large we are?" he asked me.

"Believe me, I have seen just how large you all are," I told him with a small laugh, looking first at him and then at the other guys from the pack that sat on our row. "And you're a really hot bunch at that," I whispered to him. He got another one of those smug smiles on his lips which made me roll my eyes. "But I still don't know why you guys being as large as you are, would make the coach want you on his football team." When he just looked at me a little disbelieving, I couldn't help but laugh at him. "Jake, I'm from Denmark, not from the USA. I have never, ever in my life watched an American football game. We play handball and soccer back home… which, admittedly, I don't watch either, if I have any say."

"Oh….sorry," he smiled sheepishly at me. I bit the inside of my cheek lightly to not laugh again; he was always so apologetic. It was kinda adorable, I will admit… and it made him even cuter in my eyes, if his deep, almost black, smoldering eyes and his very kissable lips weren't enough.

"No worries," I told him. When he just sat there for the next few seconds, I tilted my head a bit. He seemed as if he had gotten lost for the moment… and he was looking at me in that way that I had caught him doing on several other occasions. He was just staring at me with his mouth slightly ajar. "Jake?" He blinked a few times as if coming out of a daze, before again shooting me that apologetic smile of his.

"Sorry," he told me once again, making me giggle – which in turn seemed to brighten up his whole face. "Well, being big and muscled is pretty good when playing American Football, and since me and the guys are pretty much the tallest and buffest guys around, having us on the team would improve the chances of La Push winning."

"Hmm, really?" I asked him as I imagined him playing. Now, since I didn't really know the game, I was really just imagining Jake in that tight-fitting uniform, which would leave little to the imagination when concerning what I was sure would be a very cute ass. "That's too bad. I wouldn't mind seeing you play," I said offhandedly – adding to myself that I wouldn't mind seeing Jake in that uniform – as I turned my attention back to the principal's announcements. Jake didn't respond so I was able to focus solely on the principal – not that I would have minded speaking more with Jacob… quite the opposite, actually.

As much as I tried, I had a really hard time staying awake. The first half hour I was very attentive as the principal thought it important to state every single match for the year in every single sport that was played on the school, but after that it went downhill. Now that I think about it, I think it was after I heard the first chorus of snores (the loudest snores coming from Quil, of course) that my own eyes started drooping. I was only snapped out of it when the teachers started clapping, and as the student body awoke from their speech-induced coma, their clapping added to the deep appreciation of the end of the principal's address.

"Well… that was certainly informative," said Kim as we walked out of the auditorium with the rest of the students.

"It was boring as hell," Quil yawned. "I fell asleep almost as soon as he started speaking."

"We know," came unanimously from the Pack. Quil looked so incredulous that I couldn't help laughing.

"You have a lovely laugh, Anna, you know that?" said Jake, who had somehow positioned himself right beside me. I blushed harder than I usually would at his comment.

"Thank you, Jake." Then after a moment I exclaimed, "Oh god, I didn't hear which classroom we had to be in for the Homeroom!" I turned to the rest of them, "Did any of you hear it?"

"I think the Senior's Homeroom class is in room 14," Kim said hesitantly. "I'm not too sure, though."

"The Senior's Homeroom is in Classroom 14," a girl passing by told us, and I swear I heard Kim groan. "And the Junior's Homeroom is in Classroom 5," she said as she faced Seth who nodded. She then turned towards me again. "Hi, I'm Laura Huautah, president of the Beta Club. You must be Anna-Marie Davidsen, the exchange student from Denmark, right?" She stepped in front of me all perky, her hand presented to me to shake. It was very amusing, if I was honest. She wasn't very tall, especially compared to myself, maybe reaching one-sixty one (about five foot three). It wasn't only her height that was tiny, but her whole person. Her hair was a light brown and reached just above her shoulders. She wore glasses that nicely framed her face, as her surprisingly green eyes peered up at me through them.

"I prefer Anna, if you don't mind," I told her nicely as I shook her hand in greeting.

"Anna it is, then," she conceded still smiling brightly. "I'm so excited to meet you! I have heard so many good things about you from the teachers! They showed me the marks you received in Denmark, and I must say I'm quite impressed! We could really use you in the Beta Club if you're interested. We'll have a meeting on Thursday, so come around and say hi! Well, I better get going, see you around!" With a bag over her shoulder she twirled around and ran up to another couple of girls. They looked at me, waving at me, so I returned it. Laura was already talking animatedly with them; her hand gestures conveying her excitement.

"That was…" I started, but wasn't able to finish the sentence as I honestly started laughing. The pack soon followed my lead, and as happens when seven people laugh loudly, we drew a few looks.

"Laura is a bit perky, but she is a nice girl," Jared told me when we finally got our laughter under control. Kim scoffed and got out from under Jared's arm, this actually separating her from him for the first time since I'd known them. "What?"

"Of course you would think she's nice," Kim said with a frown. "She's been all over you for years!" Jared groaned in response, making me guess that this was a discussion that the two had had before.

"She's not after me, but as I've told you before, she was a very good friend when we were younger. I seriously doubt I would've passed my sophomore year if she hadn't helped me," Jared said almost desperately. I saw Quil and Embry snicker to each other, while both Seth and Jake sported suppressed smiles.

"Yeah? Well how do you explain her having you on speed dial half of last year?" Kim asked, now with her back to Jared, fast walking toward the building with the classrooms in it. "That's not just something you do with 'just your friend's' number!"

"Come on, we'll take the other entrance," Jake whispered into my ear as he took my hand and began walking fast away from the two troubled lovebirds. I shot him a funny look, but didn't fight his tugging. Looking over my shoulder I could see a frustrated Jared and an even more frustrated, and, if I wasn't wrong, slightly scared Kim. Was she truly afraid of losing Jared? I didn't get to think further on it, as that was when I noticed that Jake hadn't let go of my hand yet. I blushed – at that point I noticed that I've blushed more in the few days I've been here, than I have in the last year – and forced myself to wriggle out of his grip. Disappointment seemed to flash over Jake's face, but he schooled it quickly.

"What was that about?" I told him when we'd gotten out of their hearing range. Jake's response was a deep, booming chuckle that had me entranced for the few seconds it lasted.

"Don't worry about them. They will go back to be sickly in-love by lunch, most likely sucking each other's tongues while they are at the table." He rolled his eyes, "It's a bit of a running joke in the Pack, really; Kim and Jared are as close as you can get, and they make quite a couple I'll admit. The only problem they have is Laura, which is stupid because we all know Jared doesn't feel that way about Laura. I don't know if it's true or not if Laura actually _does_ have feelings for Jared, but it's really a moot point."

"Oh… okay," I answered just as we entered the classroom building. Quite a few of the students were throwing me looks – I credited it to me being the new student from the foreign country. Now, I've never had so much as a racist thought or anything like that, but looking around I'm quite relieved that I'm not the only non-Native American enrolled here. While students with Native blood in their veins is definitely the majority, as far as I could judge about a quarter was of other ethnic origin. So I was only going to stick out due to my odd hair color and my speech, rather than because of the color of my skin. "Hey Jake," I told him as we turned a corner. "Why do you call yourselves that?"

"What?" he asked confused.

"'The Pack'," I told him. "I heard it back in the Diner yesterday and now again."

"Oh, well you see," he started answering, suddenly seeming quite nervous, "it's part of our Quileute legends. They say we're descended from wolves, and we still have a close relationship to them in our culture. So when Sam started up the neighborhood watch, the Elders just started calling us 'The Pack' and it stuck."

"It's kinda weird if you ask me," I smirked at him. "Pack…"

"What's weird about it?" Jake laughed at me. "It's not _that_ unusual." I shrugged.

"It's probably a cultural thing." I got a frown from Jake out of that – another thing I added to the list of mysteries about Jake (and the Pack). By that point we reached our classroom, some of the last to arrive. Even Kim and Jared, (still not touching each other, Jared looking miserable), Quil and Embry were sitting in the back. I groaned and hid my face – way to go to arrive late on the first day.

"Mr. Black, I see you've kept up your record of tardiness from last year," our Homeroom teacher said from the front of the room by her desk. She was a stern-looking lady in her fifties, her graying hair put up in a bun. She wore rather conservative clothes, fitting for her age. She glanced up at the two of us over her horn-rimmed glasses, after which she looked back at her desk. "Keep it up and you might beat your record from last year. But if you wouldn't mind, please don't teach the new students how not to attend class." All this was said with a tone of indifference as Mrs. Fox sorted through her papers.

"Sorry Mrs. Fox," Jake muttered with his head bowed. This only caused the teacher – Mrs. Fox – to raise her right eyebrow.

"Are you really, now? You know what; I don't want to know. Take your seat, Mr. Black." She waved him away, Jake muttering an apology before he went down the aisle between desks to the back and sat beside the rest of the Pack. All the while I stood there awkwardly in front of the teacher's desk – the kind of situation I had hoped to avoid. "You must be Miss Davidsen, our new exchange student. I hope Mr. Black hasn't had the chance of ruining the image of our school, yet?"

"No, Mrs. Fox," I told her with a slight waver in my voice. It was impressive how much intimidation this elderly lady could express with such little effort. I remembered the slip I had received from Cynthia the secretary, and quickly got it out of my backpack. "I was told by the secretary to get this slip signed… if you don't mind."

"Oh, right. Give it here," Mrs. Fox told me and reached for the slip. I didn't hesitate and quickly gave it to her. She signed it right away before she handed it back to me. "Since you're already in front of the class, please introduce yourself." I nodded and with a gulp I faced the class completely. _All_ eyes were on me, including a pair of very apologetic and almost pained eyes from Jake. I couldn't worry about that now, and I smiled awkwardly.

"Erm, hello… my name is Anna-Marie, though I'd prefer Anna. As Mrs. Fox said, I'm an exchange student from Denmark and will be studying here for the year. And, erm, I live with the Clearwaters." I'd like to think that I had come across as confident, but even I could hear the shaky nervousness in my voice as I spoke. As I finished you could have heard a pin drop, and I bit my lower lip lightly. Fortunately, Mrs. Fox saved me from further embarrassment as she waved me away.

"Miss Davidsen, you can go sit by Miss Huautah." I looked and saw Laura sitting waving perkily at me – how could she make _waving_ seem perky? – and pointing to an empty seat beside her in the second row. Realizing I still had the slip of paper in my hand, I quickly packed it away before scurrying over to a smiling Laura and sat beside her. I frowned as soon as I had sat down, as I realized that this school was no different than my old one when it came to seating. Sometimes I really hated how tall I was; every table in my old school had been uncomfortable. They were, after all, regulated to be comfortable for students of regular height. That meant that I either couldn't have my legs properly under the table, or I had to slouch lower in my chair and sit with a crooked back for the duration of the class. It was a no-win situation I had accepted back in Denmark, and which I had to accept here in the USA. Rather than tables and chairs, this school had desks that were one single piece of furniture. They were designed by someone who studied the principles of the Marquis de Sade it seemed and were equally uncomfortable for someone my height. My one consolation, all of the Pack were suffering right along with me. I sighed and let it go, as I opened my bag and brought out my notebook and pencil, ready to take notes.

Mrs. Fox quickly went through a roll call and procedures, so she could get through the necessary information before we're off to the next lesson. Taking a smallish stack of paper, she handed it to a boy on the first row. "Please distribute these quietly, Nathan," she told him in her no-nonsense voice and then faced the class. Nathan didn't hesitate, and quickly moved to distribute what the teacher had handed him, as Mrs. Fox began addressing the class. "I'm pleased to see we have everyone but Mr. Lahote here – and that is how I expected it would be. Listen up; this is your senior year. How you do in school this year will impact the rest of your lives. It will impact everything from how many colleges will accept you, to what employers will actually want to hire you. The school has also upgraded its policy towards absence and truancy: anyone found with an absenteeism rate higher than fifteen percent will, along with one's parent be called into a talk. Anyone with an absenteeism rate higher than twenty-five percent will, if the absence is not deemed reasonable, be retained at the school to catch up on the work each day for as long as we teachers see fit." There was a lot of groaning as Mrs. Fox finished. But their reactions paled compared to the shout from the back of the classroom.

"You can't be serious!" Jacob exclaimed. The whole class turned to look at him. He was standing behind his desk. It would have fallen over from the force of his standing but he was holding it with his knuckles whitened and he was shaking slightly. I don't know if he noticed, but I saw a great deal of the class roll their eyes at him, all the while he was gaining worried looks from Embry, Quil, Jared and Kim. I couldn't help but feel a pang of worry myself – which is crazy, but as much as I was attracted to Jake (and that was an understatement), I didn't really know the guy… at all.

"_Mr. Black!_ I assure you that the school administrators and I are perfectly serious! Now _sit down_, and don't disturb the class again!" I admit to frowning a bit at the way Mrs. Fox spoke to Jake. But… if I was to judge by how – or rather what – she said to him when we entered the classroom (and late at that, I scolded myself), he hadn't exactly been a good student. And since he _did_ just shout at the teacher… it all left me with a frown. "I said, _sit down_, Mr. Black," I heard Mrs. Fox repeat. I looked back Jacob, who was still standing up, and now his nostrils were flaring. I could feel my face contort with worry… that was when Jacob looked me straight in the eyes.

He froze up, as if the whole world stopped revolving. And then his eyes got so sad and regretful, and I could just see the whole fight evaporate out of him. His whole form sagged together, and he sunk down into his seat, all the while his eyes didn't waver the least as they were caught in mine. Then he closed his eyes and took a deep, calming breath. "I'm sorry Mrs. Fox… it won't happen again." Mrs. Fox's right eyebrow rose, as she looked at the two meter giant like she didn't believe him.

"Well, this day is just full of surprises," she all but drawled. "Don't let it happen again. As I said, this year will be full of changes. You will actually have to show up and do your assignments if you want credit for the class at the end of the year. You will have to show up and do your assignments if you actually want to participate in the school clubs. You will have to show up and do your assignments if you want to attend the dances that the school hosts, including the homecoming dance." This time it was four girls on the fourth row that gasped. When I turned to look at them, they looked horrorstruck, and where whispering to each other in hushed tones. They were all dolled up; faces full of all the makeup in the world, clothes that were on the borderline to be against school rules, and I could hear them say 'like' every few seconds.

Mrs. Fox kept talking, but I only listened with one ear; I was still a bit intrigued by the girls. And now not only the girls… everywhere I looked in the classroom, the students that sat together looked very alike. Like, dolled up girls, jocks, the Pack that sat in the back of the classroom, the geeks… and the group I was sitting in must be the prissy people. It was fascinating; back in Denmark there weren't cliques like that. Sure, we were very different, but everyone hung out with everyone. People of course sat with their friends, but they didn't mind at all if they had to sit with someone who wasn't their bestie. Of course I shouldn't judge too quickly – that may very well also be the case here. Maybe they just sat together like this because it was the first day back in school, and they had missed one another.

"… Anna-Marie? I-I mean Anna? H-here is your schedule." I looked up to see the boy, Nathan, who Mrs. Fox had given the stack of paper to. I couldn't help but be amused as he was looking rather nervous, and had a cute blush spread over his cheeks. He was of Native American descent, so he had that beautiful hazel-ish colored skin and straight, black hair. Though, different from the pack, he hadn't cropped the hair short – he wore his hair down to his shoulders, a single small strand of it braided by his temple. Actually, now that I looked around at the other students, there was a very small minority who had their hair cut short. I could only spot three other boys who weren't in the pack, whose hairstyles were short. But those things could wait till later.

I accepted the schedule with a smile. "It's Anna, yes. And thank you." He blushed even harder at that, and hurried away to hand over the next schedule. I heard giggling beside me, and saw Laura with her two friends holding their hands over their mouths to stifle the sound. "What?"

"It looks like Nathan has a small crush on you," one of them told me. "By the way, I'm Avery." Avery was nice looking girl, one of the few that weren't of Native American heritage. Her skin wasn't quite as white as my own (which was as white as could be, considering where I was from), Caucasian was the closest 'race' I could classify her into. Her hair was a dirty blond, and went to a centimeter or two below her shoulders – it was worn as a single braid. She had green-blue eyes, and quite a few freckles spread on her face.

"Hello Avery," I greeted her back. "And what do you mean he… erm…"

"Nathan," Laura supplied.

"Yeah, Nathan. How do you know he has a crush on me? I've just met him."

"Hmm," the other girl said with a grin. "And he was blushing like mad just now. He's a nervous guy to begin with, but that wasn't normal. He's a sweet guy, you know… you could do worse. I'm Wesley, by the way, but I prefer Wes." Wesley was also Native American, and just as pretty as the rest of them. Her eyes were light brown, and her hair not as black as the rest. She wore it in a high ponytail, which only just reached the lower part of her neck.

"Nice to meet you Wes. But I'm not exactly looking for any relationships at the moment," I told her honestly. "I mean, how could I honestly get committed to a guy here, when in a year I'll be back in Denmark? It would be cruel to both of us," I finished with a shake of my head.

"I guess that makes sense," Laura mused. "Though, he won't be the only boy who is after you, I think. I mean, I'll be frank with you; you are pretty beautiful, and there is no girl around here – nor in Forks – who looks like you. And Jacob looked rather hypnotized by you when we left the auditorium."

Wes gasped, "Wait, they actually walked with you?"

"They?" I asked confused, while blushing slightly at the mention of Jacob. I glanced back to where he sat and saw him looking at me. His eyes and smile brightened as we made eye contact again – and now that I had gotten the new information, I'm afraid I actually blushed quite visibly as I snapped my head back to the front.

"They – the Pack: Jacob, Quil, Embry, Paul, Jared, and Seth. You know, the hottest guys around here," Avery explained in a 'duh' tone, though not unfriendly. "Did they really let you walk with them?"

I was frowning again by now. "I don't know why they shouldn't. As I said, I live with the Clearwaters – Seth, Leah and Sue – and I've already met them and Sam and his fiancée once before at the Diner." They were gaping silently at me now. "Is that not normal?"

Laura was the first to get her composure back. "No… not really. They were like all of us, and not as tall or buff. Then one by one they got sick and weren't in school for about three weeks. And then they come back all buff and macho and cold, and only ever acknowledged each other. They even ran out of class quite a few times…" She sighed. "It got better during spring, and I got to talk to Jared again and helped him with school. I tried asking about what was going on, but every time I did he would go back to being standoffish, so I stopped asking. They acknowledge us now, though they prefer each other's company. There are even going rumors around that they're a cult or gang or something like that, but you shouldn't believe it. I don't know what they're doing, but it can't be anything bad – the Elders wouldn't stand for it."

"I thought that they were in a neighborhood watch?" I asked.

"Well, you could say that," Wes conceded. "They did run a drug dealer out of La Push last year. He had come around school and tried to sell, and the next day he was gone. Some people overheard Sam and Jared talk about it, and when we asked about it, they didn't deny it." Seeing my growing frown, Wes gave me a smile. "But they're not bad people. Just… a bit different, that's all." I was quiet for a few seconds after that, giving their statements a moment of thought. The guys did seem a bit different – I _had_ noticed that. But they were very nice people… especially Jake. Laura brought me out of my thoughts quite abruptly.

"Now, let's see what your schedule is! I hope we have a couple of subjects together!" Laura perkily claimed as she snatched my schedule and laid it on the table between us. I glanced at Avery and Wes, and both of them laughed lightly while Wes also rolled her eyes. At least I wasn't the only one who thought Laura was perky – but she was very nice. If perky was the worst she could do, I would gladly endure it to be her friend. There were tons of things that were worse.

I looked down at my schedule, rather curious to see which subjects I had gotten and when. Back home before I left, I was asked to fill out an online form providing my marks and my preferences for elective courses. I was pleasantly surprised that I had gotten the elective I wanted – Trigonometry. I could see it had taken the place of regular math, but seeing as I aced that course and got an A+ on the exam, I didn't mind much. Trigonometry was always something I had a bit of trouble with. But to me that just made it even more fun, as it was even more of a challenge.

Anyway, my schedule looked like this; first thing in the day there was Homeroom from eight fifteen to eight twenty-six, which was followed by first period that was English from eight thirty to nine twenty-six. Second period was Biology from nine thirty to ten twenty-six, then something called Spartan Study from ten thirty to eleven oh-one, and then third period of physics from eleven oh-four to twelve double-oh. Then there was a forty minute lunch break, followed by fourth period of History from twelve forty-four to one forty (I had to stop for a second here, momentarily surprised by the different way the Americans wrote down the time, starting from one again, instead of saying thirteen), which then went over into fifth period of my elective (trigonometry) from one forty-four to two forty. The final period of the day was Physical Education from two forty-four to three fifty-five.

"All right! It looks like we have English and History together – and of course P.E. with the rest of the seniors," Laura declared happily. And then, "Wow, you chose Trigonometry? You know that's one of the hardest subjects, right?"

"Shit, you chose Trig?" Avery exclaimed in a whisper. We couldn't speak louder than that, after all, as Mrs. Fox was still going on with her lecture – if I heard right she was explaining the importance of taking notes at the moment (at least that hadn't changed by moving to another continent).

"Yeah, I did. And it's kinda the point that it's hard – that's the fun of it," I told them with a grin. Then I looked at Wes and Avery, "How do your schedules look?"

"Here, let me see yours and see if we have any subjects together," Avery offered and reached for my schedule, which I happily gave her.

"I still haven't gotten mine yet," Wes answered with a shrug. "But by the looks of it, there aren't many left." I turned to look at Nathan – Wes was right, very few schedules were left in his hand. As he gave a schedule to a jock-looking fellow a few rows back, he glanced at me quickly. That caused his face to darken with a blush, and he looked down on his paper. I sighed; I guess the girls were right about the crush. I just had to make sure not to give Nathan any false hope. Maybe the crush would go together with my 'bright and shiny' phase? And if it didn't, I just had to tell him calmly why I wouldn't want to date anyone while I was here.

"Hmm, looks like we only have English and P.E. together," she told me with a sad smile as she handed my schedule back. "Too bad – you seem like an awesome person." I accepted the schedule, but instead of putting it in my bag, I laid it beside me on the table – so when Wes got her schedule I wouldn't have to make a racket of noise. However, as Mrs. Fox began to speak of important dates – the Homecoming game and dance, mock exams, trips for the Senior Year – I turned my full attention back to her and continued my notes. I hadn't written much so far, as it was basically what was expected of us this year, but the dates I couldn't forget. I had to buy a calendar for my room, too, so I could write it down. While I _could_ do that on my iPhone, I much prefer something tangible – I was still rather new with this whole intellectual phone thing.

The rest of Homeroom-turned-English pretty much proceeded like that. I did find out during a two minute break that Wes and I had Physics and History together, so that was something. The class ended, as the secretary had told me, twenty minutes past ten which was signaled by a bell. Mrs. Fox thanked us for being relatively quiet (she shot a look at the Pack at that remark), and wished us luck – because we were going to need it. With her leaving the classroom the people began chattering for real, and I almost winced at the racket. I was a person who preferred quiet by nature. Even as everyone around me began to walk out of the classroom, I still hadn't risen from my seat; I was going through the two pages worth of notes I had written during class.

"Anna? Are you coming?" Laura asked. "We're going to the library until third period: it's nice and quiet, since not many students bother with the library on the first day back to school… and some not any other days, either." I looked up and saw that Laura, Avery, and Wes was standing with their light jackets (I hadn't bothered with jacket, considering it was only September) over their hands, and bags slung over their shoulders, all of them looking back at me expectantly. I smiled and waved them away.

"That's okay; I have a few things I want to get sorted. I'll find the library later. And if I don't, we'll all see each other in P.E., right?"

"The last period is canceled today to the Principals Speech – all period has been pushed a period back, so we won't have P.E. today," Avery told me.

"Oh… I guess the Principal said that in the latter part of the speech?" I asked a little embarresed.

"Yeah, but it's been that way for a long time on the first day of school around here," Wes told me. "Are you sure you won't come with us?"

I waved them away with a smile. "I'll be fine. I'll see you around."

"Oh, okay then," Wes shrugged.

"If you need any help getting around, don't forget that you can ask us," Avery smiled.

"I won't," I said absentmindedly as I was looking back at my notes. I heard the quiet snickering of, I think, Wes, and then their footsteps as they walked out of the classroom. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding; finally it was nice and quiet, for at least a little while. I concentrated on my notes and made sure I hadn't written anything that was complete crap. I found it much better to look through my notes quickly after the class and correct any confusing statements, rather than sit confused when I actually had to use the notes and think '_what the hell was I doing?_'.

"Is that Danish?" I suddenly heard Jake's voice from behind me (making me jump in surprise), a second before he snatched my block of paper over my shoulder. I looked up behind me to see Jake looking scrutinizing the paper with a frown on his face. I smiled as I thought that he shouldn't frown – he looked way better when he was smiling and laughing. I shook that thought from my head as I let him read (or try to read) my notes, and packed my pencil into the case and into my bag as I answered him.

"Yeah it is."

"…it looks weird," he said with a teasing grin. I rolled my eyes at him and snatched my notes back and put them in my bag.

"_Jerk_," I muttered good-natured, and grabbed my bag and began to walk out.

"What did that mean?" Jake asked me as he got up beside me, outside the classroom. Apparently we had left just in time to see the next class enter, the students giving us more than a few odd looks, as their craned their necks to see our faces. I ignored the looks.

"That is for me to know, and you _not_ to find out," I teased him. It was his time to roll his eyes. "Where are the rest of the Pack? From what I've heard you guys are pretty inseparable." There was a flash of something dark that crossed his face, but he wiped it away so fast I doubted I even saw anything.

"They went ahead. I was getting a bit tired of Quil and Embry's bad jokes, and Kim and Jared made up again so they need some time to suck tongue," he answered nonchalantly, making me snort in amusement. "Which gives me time to give you a tour of the school," he told me with a happy smile on his face. "We'll just have to be quiet so we don't disturb the other classes – it's only the seniors who have Spartan Study right now."

"Hey, what is that Spartan Study?" I told him, honestly confused.

"Some school call it Study Hour. The Junior's and Senior's get a period to study since we have so many exams and all that," he said with an eye roll. I frowned mentally; did he really think so little of school. He winced as if he realized how it had come out, but didn't correct the statement. I decided to change the subject.

"So you're going to be my own personal tour guide?" I asked him softly, amused at his antics. My amusement only increased as he stepped back, and bowed to me.

"Yes I am! Jacob Black, tour guide extraordinaire, at your beck and call," he grinned at me from his bow (which drew even more looks). I laughed outright this time – so much so that I snorted. I immediately slapped my hands over mouth, giggling.

"Did you just… _snort_," Jake asked with a laugh, as he rose back up to his full height. I shot him a mock-glare.

"Don't tease me about it! I can't help if I snort when I truly laugh," I told him still giggling. Kazewa, Julie, and Martin all thought it was adorable that I snorted when I laughed. Me, not so much – I hated the way I laughed. I'm not asking for a beautiful laugh here, but a laugh that didn't turn heads when I did would be nice, you know? "Anyway, should we get that tour going?"

* * *

**Author's Note:** I apologize for the late update. I've been having some rather shitty weeks, so I haven't really felt like writing too much. Anyway, I hope you liked the chapter and the new characters introduced. And I just want to assure everyone that there isn't going to be any triangle drama as such – neither Jacob/Anna/Nathan, nor Anna/Jacob/Bella. Sure, when Bella finally enters the picture (which she will), there will be awkwardness and doubts. But Jacob isn't quite _in_ love with Bella anymore – and Bella is firmly on Team Edward in this story.

Until Next Time :)


	5. Tours, School Clubs, and Idiots

**Disclaimer;** I do not own any of the setting or characters in the story, other than the OC's. All rights are reserved for Stephenie Meyer.

_**The One for Me**_

**Summary:** I had never counted on finding my second half when I applied to the exchange-program, and moved to La Push for a year. I wasn't actively looking for a boyfriend or love, but just tried to be happy. But now there's this rather insistent guy, and he is so sweet and caring, and everything I want in a boyfriend – and I daresay a husband. But he is also secretive, and he has a bit of a temper, and keeps changing from hot to cold. That said, you have to take the bitter with the sweet… could he truly be The One for Me? Jacob/OC story. Mostly OC POV. Post-NM, pre-EC.

**Chapter Five:** Tours, School Clubs, and Idiots

* * *

The tour of the school didn't take an especially long time. As it was, I had already seen half of the school just by arriving there, and the school wasn't that large. That said, Jake showed me around to the different buildings, only just staying for a few seconds at the three buildings I had already been in. I did get to see where the laboratories were and the quality of said laboratories (a bit more used from what I was used to), where the cafeteria was (including where the Pack usually sat, and where to definitely _not_ sit), and, to my surprise, a small stadium where the football games were played (I had to remind myself that it was _American_ football – I was still thinking of the round ball you kick with your feet when I heard the word 'football'). There were far too many seats for just the school – even if it was the entire of the student body and the staff that showed up for the games.

The explanation I got from Jake was that it, football that is, is a rather big thing here in the US, and that a great many scholarships to different colleges were given to talented players. The last part was a 'deal-breaker' for many, since not everyone could afford to pay for college. Both concepts – both that a sport was attached to the school and that people couldn't afford to pay for school – were extremely foreign to me, the second concept more than the first. Back home all sports, clubs, and all that kind of stuff were done outside of the school – or rather, you could do it on school grounds, but the school was not connected to it. And that people couldn't afford to pay for school had me stumbling because in Denmark we were paid to study, and our education expenses were paid _for us_. Like, even now when I was in the US, I got sent some money from the government so I could concentrate on my studies instead of working a job on the side – not that it would've been a problem for me.

It was just yet another difference between Denmark and the USA. It was going to take a bit of time to get used to the drastically different mindset that Americans had.

"And that's really it," Jake told me as we made our way back from the stadium and toward the other buildings. "It isn't really that big or anything; it's one of the smallest schools in Washington at least as far as I've heard – even Fork's High School is larger than ours."

"I must admit that it does seem kinda small," I conceded as I nodded and looked at the buildings. "But in my opinion it isn't the size of the campus, but the quality of the education that truly matters. I mean, you can have all the state-of-the-art equipment, but it won't do you squat if your teacher doesn't want to, or isn't able to, teach you." I felt a small frown take over my features; it had happened to me – getting a teacher who can't or won't teach you. Most fortunately it only lasted the first half of the year in my first year of my Higher Secondary School. The guy was really hopeless, and I'm still wondering to this day how he even got the job.

"I guess," Jake shrugged. "I never really thought about it much." I glanced at him as he said that. For as much as I was attracted to this piece of hunk beside me, I was also worried and baffled at his attitude toward the school. Of course I hadn't seen much, but almost all of his personal comments toward the school had some hint of negativity in them.

"By the way, when are we going to get our books?" I asked him as soon as I realized I hadn't thought of that tiny (not so much) detail yet. It was most likely something else the principal also told in his speech. "We aren't skipping book delivery or anything, are we? Because as much as I enjoy the tour, it would seriously not be cool," I teased him. I almost instantly regretted teasing, because Jake got a look of horror and utter denial across his face as I finished my sentence. Note to self; don't go teasing people too much before they've learned to know you – they don't know your humor.

"God no! I would never do that to you, Anna," he said, horrified.

"Jake, I was teasing. I know that I don't know you that well yet," I said and saw him huff out a breath and frown lightly. It just made me smile. "_But_," I said and he started to smile again, "I got this feeling about you. You are… good." I blushed as I realized that he was in all manner of the sense a stranger to me. "Gosh, I sound like an idiot."

"No, you don't," Jake told me with so much feeling it made me blush all over again. He brushed his hands against mine, "You're beautiful and smart, but never an idiot." I blushed harder. Glancing up at him, he avoided my eyes as his own cheeks were darkened a shade or two. It made me smile.

"Thank you."

"We, the Seniors, get our books after the last period. It takes around fifteen minutes," he answered my question after about half a minute of silence, giving both of us time to gather ourselves.

"That's good." I blushed again when it came out awkwardly. Jacob was an enigma to me; I had only just met him a few days ago, but even I could tell that there was some kind of connection between us. It was like he had something to prove to me… and the way he looked at me, while flattering, was also scary with how much emotion his eyes carried. And then there was the way his voice affected me like no one had ever done before – even Cassie never had that effect on me. Yes, there was _something_ between us. It was just sad that I couldn't let it go further than this. After all, it would only be another year, and I would be home in cold, brisk Denmark. Why did it hurt when I thought of that? My stomach twisted and my throat knotted. I shook my head trying to get rid of those feelings. We walked in silence until we reached the buildings again, at which point something seemed to dawn on Jacob.

"Oh, I still haven't shown you the Bulletin Board. It's where most of the Clubs present news, and where you can see how to get into a club. Since it's the start of the year, almost every club has a kinda audition for anyone new." With that he placed his hand on the small of my back, gently pointing me in the right direction. The warmth of his hand seemed to penetrate my skin with ease as his hand didn't move for a few moments – surely longer than necessary. I didn't complain, however. When he retracted his hand, I actually was a bit disappointed; the warmth was still very much present in the lower part of my back, and I couldn't help but smile at that. It took me almost a full minute before I was able to think straight again.

"Are school clubs as big a thing here as the movies make them out to be?" I asked Jacob curiously. During our tour Jake had learned that my questions shouldn't surprise him, however mundane they may seem to him; he had finally figured out that I actually _was_ from another culture, one that was very different than his, a culture with different values and different traditions.

"That depends on which movies you've seen," he teased me with his special grin that made my heart beat fast. I was just glad that he couldn't hear how much he affected me; the blushes were bad enough as it was. I wasn't used to someone affecting me this much… it was frustrating and exciting all at the same time. Jake continued, thankfully not having noticed anything amiss. "But yeah, it's pretty big. It's rare that people aren't somewhat connected to any clubs. That's especially true in towns as small as La Push and Forks; there simply isn't much to do out of school – no theaters, dance clubs, cafés. So people join clubs to have fun. It's often that the clubs from La Push and Forks have friendly competitions and meetings since we're so close to each other distance-wise. Don't you have school clubs in Denmark?"

I hummed as I thought about how to answer.

"Not like here, no," I finally said slowly. "There are a few committees for students – at least there was at the school I went to; a party committee to arrange parties, an event committee to arrange different events, and the student council. Back home school is very much kept for educational purposes solely." The second it came out of my mouth I realized how it sounded, and I laughed at it. "Shit, I didn't mean it like that! What I meant was that back home it's _only_ academic purposes, no clubs like here. The school grounds and classrooms can be used for clubs, but the body that 'controls' the school has nothing to do with them other than knowing that the room is being used. It's the local authorities and communities that 'control' the clubs."

Jake's nose scrunched up in thought. "Sounds different."

Agreeing completely, I nodded. I then proceeded asking, "Are you member of any clubs, then?"

"No, I'm not." The answer surprised me, and it showed on my face. After all, he had just told me that most students were members of at least a single club. "I haven't had much time to be a member of any of the clubs. Dad needs my help at home because of his wheelchair, and I've been fixing cars to earn money to help with the bills. And then the whole-" He stopped speaking quite abruptly, and I looked at him with concern. Annoyance was visible on his face, but he continued in the same tone. "And then I joined Sam in his neighborhood watch."

"Oh." What else could I say? It was clear that something was clearly bothering him, but while, as I told him, I felt I could perhaps trust him, he still was someone I had just met.

"Sorry," I told him and he looked at me again. "About your father that is. Isn't your mother around? Or any siblings?" I instantly regretted – again – saying anything: Pure pain flashed across his face, and without thinking much (Cassie would have laughed his ass off at the moment) I slipped my hand into his. The pain eased a bit, though still very visible, and his lips tugged in a small, pained smile. All the while I couldn't help but marvel at how well our hands fit together. I caressed his hand gently, and the pain receded slightly again. "Sorry, I shouldn't have asked."

He sighed heavily. "No, it's… fine. My mom died six years ago, when I was ten, in a car accident." Clearly shaken by the memory, he took another settling breath. "Rachel and Rebecca, that's my sisters – they're twins… They took her death hard. They couldn't stay at the Res and took off from here as soon as they were able to; Rachel is currently studying at Washington State University and hasn't been home for more than a brief visit for less than a day. And 'Becca married a professional surfer named Solomon and moved to Hawaii with him as soon as she turned eighteen. It's only been Dad and me for a couple of years now. And we do fine, really." He was silent after that, as his confessions hung in the air. Whatever I felt about him, he clearly felt about me to some extent. For all that I had known of him in a few days, he didn't seem like a guy to spill his secrets to a stranger. I gave his hand a squeeze and let go – trying to ignore the very visible disappointment in his face, as I felt the same and I couldn't understand why. After a few seconds of silence I spoke up.

"My parents died when I was eight."

The statement had hung in the air for all of half a second before Jacob reacted. His eyes snapped to mine with undivided attention, as I felt myself grow slightly melancholy at the memories of my parents. "It was a fire – our house caught fire. The firefighters were able to get me out quite fast, but my parents… Dad died in the fire, burned to death. And Mom died a few days later in the hospital from smoke poisoning." I noticed we had stopped walking, but I didn't mind it right now – we should have enough time until then next period. While Jake had shared his secret with me, I had no idea why I shared my secret – or rather this particular secret – with him. I didn't talk to anyone but Jake about my parents, and Julie and Martin had learned long ago not to mention them. "After their death I didn't have any family left to take me in, so I ended up in the Foster Care System – which I exited a few months ago once I turned eighteen." I smiled a sad smile at him, noticing he had unshed tears in his eyes. This softened my face further, "Jake, you don't have to cry for me. They have been dead for nearly a decade now, and while it well and truly sucks at times, I have gotten used to it by now."

"Still, I feel sorry for yo-" he started, but I cut him off right away. I grabbed his wrist and stopped up again, vaguely noticing we were outside the cafeteria now. Thankfully there wasn't anyone here at the moment – everyone else having lessons or already found a spot to hang out.

Looking sternly into his eyes I said, "No. Really; _please_ don't talk about it. I only told Sue, and that was only mentioning that they died – _nothing_ else. I would even like that fact to be kept among a _very_ few people. Every single time I have met a new group of people, if I tell them that I was orphaned at a young age, they will have a thousand questions I quite frankly don't want to answer. And the first couple of months, and that's if I'm lucky it lasts so little time, they will think of me as that orphaned girl that they will pity and talk of behind my back. I don't want to be that girl here. So _please_ don't tell anyone and _please_ don't pity me like all those others have."

"Anna," he said with soft eyes and took a strand of my hair in his hand. My eyes snapped to it as I saw him feel the texture of it. I looked back at his eyes, as he looked back at mine. "You can trust me. You feel it too, don't you?" I nodded slowly. "I won't tell anyone unless you want me to. Your secret is safe with me."

"Thank you." At that point I realized that I had been squeezing his wrist quite hard – and he hadn't told me off on it. I let go as my lips tugged in a smile; how nice of him. "Sorry about that," I apologized and motioned to his wrist.

"Ah, never mind that," he laughed at me. The atmosphere between us quickly went back to as it was before – only more charged now. "There has to be a lot more done to get to me like that."

"Mr. Black," I said in amusement as I crossed my arms, "are you calling me weak?"

"Never." We grinned at each other, and proceeded to walk into the cafeteria. He steered me through it again – the food the cooks were making was starting to make a delicious aroma – toward a board we hadn't stopped at on our tour. I ignored the looks as he stopped in front of it, and presented it with a motion of his arms. "And this is _the_ bulletin board. Everything school related – including the football games – will be announced in homeroom class. But almost everything else about the clubs and events will be posted here. And as I told you, you can see that a great many clubs have posted schedules for their mock auditions."

Looking over the board as he spoke, I was surprised by how many school clubs there actually were. Of course, not all of them were for me, far from it. I am a fit girl, and I quite like to exercise, but the whole thing about competing… _that_ wasn't my thing. There weren't many sports clubs that just did sports for the sake of exercise and not to beat other clubs, so I had decided years ago I would just do it for myself. This school wasn't different, as under each sport (football, _soccer_, basketball, baseball, track) there was a schedule to when the teams – to call them clubs was a bit of a stretch – would compete against other 'teams'. But that didn't mean there was nothing for me. I saw a poem club which listed the purpose of finding poems, readings for the members, and discussing the meaning of poetry. I saw a Science club, and a mathematics club. It wasn't long before I had my notebook out to scribble the different details of the clubs – apparently that amused Jacob quite a bit – alongside the date and locations of the so-called auditions. Just as I finished scribbling I spotted a particularly colorful piece of paper; it was an advertisement for a local band named Nirvana Redux. They were looking for a female singer.

"Who are they?" I asked Jake pointing at the advertisement for Nirvana Redux. "Are they good?"

"Huh?" Jake asked and his eyes focused. I smirked at him; I knew just what he had been looking at. It should bother me to be looked at like that, but… Jake was Jake, and it only pleased me that he quite obviously found me hot. He blushed but looked at the poster I had motioned toward. "Ah, I don't know. It's some of Seth's friends who founded it last summer. It's mostly juniors from their year who are band members, but I think they have a sophomore drummer." He looked at me, still his cheeks tinted dark. "Are you planning on trying out?"

"Perhaps," I said and scribbled down the information about the tryouts. I then proceeded to look at my watch. It was ten to eleven, so it was soon time for our third period. "I'm intrigued. Anyway, it's soon time for the next period. I've got biology, you?"

His face lit up again in joy. "I have biology too. Come on, I'll show you the way. It's three minutes away." He had taken two steps before he stopped and turned toward me. "On second thought, why don't _you_ show the way? Now that you have had an incredibly amazing tour guide like myself, you should know this place like the back of your hand."

I cocked my eyebrow at him and drawled, "I gotta say that the thing I like the most about you is your incredible selflessness and small ego." He just rolled his eyes and waited for me to show the way. I sighed and started to lead the way out of the cafeteria. I didn't know exactly where Laboratory 3A was, but I knew the building. And since there only were four laboratories it shouldn't be _too_ hard.

I found the place with only a single clue from Jake when I got slightly unsure at the fork of the hallway. This time we weren't the last to arrive – we weren't the first, but not the last. Quickly greeting our teacher, a Latino man in his late twenties whose name was a Mr. Gabriel Ramos, I got my slip signed. I decided to take a seat on the second row at one of the stations, since the first row was already occupied. The classroom-slash-laboratory was of very simple design, with a walk down the middle of the classroom, and a single station on each side of the walkway. Bringing out my notebook again, it didn't get lost on me how many looks I was getting. Some of it I credited to the fact that I was new, but from my talk with Laura, Avery and Wes, I knew that people from 'the Pack' didn't usually hang with others. Their stares only got more baffled when Jake took a seat beside me. I simply raised an eyebrow at him

"Do you mind partnering with me?" he asked, slightly insecure and very hopeful.

"Not at all," I shrugged. "But don't expect me to go easy on you just because your incredibly hot," I told him and he got that smug look on his face. I rolled my eyes. "Jake, I'm serious. Its okay if you have trouble or something like that, but I don't want to have a partner who just expects me to do all the work, and then takes credit for the half he hasn't done. I don't expect a miracle, but I want my partner to make an effort."

"I'll do my best," Jake promised. Again it was like he put his very soul into the promise. I didn't focus on it right now; I needed to get my main focus on the lesson we were going to have. I had aced Biology back home in the marks of the year, but I hadn't drawn it as an exam subject. I was confident that I had a great understanding of the subject however. But that wasn't going to be an excuse for me to take it easy; as with everything I committed myself to, I was going to take it seriously.

The next five minutes wasn't much to speak about, I made small talk with Jake, and introduced myself briefly to the two girls on the station in front of us, Alexandra and Paige, and to the two boys behind us, Jason and Mark. I was drawn from my conversation with Jake as Jared and Embry very loudly entered the room shoving each other. When they spotted Jake sitting with me, both of their eyebrows shot high, which was soon replaced by a grin as they whispered to each other. Walking past us, Embry gave Jake a not-so-subtle thumbs up. I shook my face in amusement but didn't comment further on it.

The lesson started as any lesson would start, with the teacher welcoming the students back – and pointing out the new students (me) –, followed by what we were going to do this year. Today was going to be a bit different as we hadn't gotten our books yet, but it shouldn't be a problem with the small lecture he had planned. So far I hadn't drawn too much attention to myself – that is, if you didn't count Jake who spent almost as much, if not more, time looking at me than looking at the teacher. I caught his eyes one time when I turned to look at him questioningly, which caused him to light up again, but hadn't done it since. The not drawing attention to myself plan would however end as I answered a question the teacher asked about the subject in Biology we were going to be immersed in for the next few weeks: cells.

"So, can anyone here tell me what a cell is?" Mr. Ramos asked the class. A couple of hands rose, including my own. "Mr. Moore."

"It's what our bodies and everything living is made up of," the guy behind me said, Jason Moore was apparently his name.

"Correct, though there is a lot more to it. Anyone else got more to say?" Mr. Ramos looked as all the hands but mine fell down. "Ah, Miss Davidsen. What can you tell us about cells?"

"Well, as Jason said, it's what makes up all living things on earth," I started and I saw some of the other students roll their eyes. They probably though I just wanted to repeat him – they were wrong. "There are two kinds of cells, Eukaryotes and Prokaryotes, which in Latin means something akin to 'After-Nucleus' and 'Before-Nucleus' respectively. Eukaryotes can be both unicellular and multicellular, while Prokaryotes are almost entirely unicellular except in a rare few cases. Another difference between Eukaryotes and Prokaryotes is that Eukaryotes are more advanced with a nucleus where the DNA is stored, and have more organelles – the cellular equivalent of organs. Animal and plant cells are all Eukaryotic, while bacteria are Prokaryotic. As for Viruses, they are not considered to be a living organism, as they are not able to propagate on their own – they need to infect a host and used the organelles and resources available there. Vira – sorry, Viruses – are basically just some DNA covered with a protein." As I finished, there was a stunned silence in the room. Everyone was looking at me with… I don't know what, but I think it was disbelief.

"Well," Mr. Ramos said with a small laugh, "class, that is basically what we're going to learn the next few weeks. It seems like you will have it easy for a while, Miss Davidsen." And then he proceeded with the lesson. I admit that I was embarrassed by the attention, but I would not hold back just because of that. The thing in my possession that I was most proud of was my intelligence, and I wouldn't act dumber or more stupid for anyone. I had done that for one person, and that had _not_ ended well. If people liked me, that was great and I would do my best to like them back, or at least bear with them. But if they didn't like me, it was _their_ problem.

"Who's Vira?"

"Huh?" I asked and snapped out of my note scribbling. I glanced at Jake who had been asking the question, before going back to scribbling, but now listening to the hot stuff beside me with one ear. "Sorry, what?"

"Vira," he repeated. "When you went all Einstein on us you said Vira instead of Viruses." I frowned; what an odd question to ask. Glancing at him again I think he got the message, because he threw me one of his slightly insecure smiles that, while making him look adorable, just didn't belong on his face. "I just want to know you… that's all." There it was again – including the blushing (both mine and his).

"It was a slip of my tongue," I finally told him after a few seconds. "Vira is the plural form of a Virus in Danish, and since the singular form of Virus is also named Virus in English, it slipped out before I could correct it."

Jake simply nodded at that, and I went back to focus on the lesson – again. It was the last time in that period that Jake actively disturbed me, but I could still feel his eyes on me. I ignored it to the best of my abilities and listened to Mr. Ramos's lecture. It wasn't long before the lunch bell rang – at least it wasn't for me, but judging by Embry's resounding 'finally!' it might have felt longer for others. Embry and Jared quickly joined Jake and me outside of the classroom, as we made our way out of the building.

"Do you want to sit with us for lunch?" Jake asked hopefully. Apparently I wasn't the only one who heard the tone of his voice, because again both Jared and Embry snickered and pushed Jake lightly in good humor. He sent a glare their way, but his attention quickly returned to me as I answered.

"Well, I've already kind of promised Seth to sit with you, so yeah, I'll sit with you guys," I answered while looking through my bag. I frowned as I spotted my wallet. "By the way, does the cafeteria take credit cards, or only cash?"

"Cash," all three answered at the same time, followed by Jared asking, "Why?"

"Because I only have a credit card on me," I winced and sighed. I turned to them, unsure. "Listen, I know we just met, but would it be possible to borrow some cash for just a small meal? I'll pay you back tomorrow when I've found an ATM."

"Sure! How much do you need?" Jake answered right away in high spirits as he brought out his wallet. Jared and Embry _again_ snickered, though louder this time. "Take a ten, it should be enough." He held out the ten dollar bill to me.

"Thank you." I accepted it and put it in my wallet. "I promise, I'll give it back to you tomorrow. I just need to find an ATM," I told him seriously.

"Don't worry about it," he waved it away.

"No, I'm serious. I'll have it by tomorrow," I insisted. "By the way, do any of you know where there is a bike shop? Do you have one in La Push or maybe Forks? Or do I have to go to Port Angeles for that."

"I think you'll have to go all the way to Port A for that," Embry answered. "But I could be wrong; I don't really look out for bike shops."

I sighed. I would have to wait for a bike until I could get a ride to Port Angeles, most likely two weeks from now at least. So either I had to get used to depending on someone for a ride to school, or I had to start heading to school, walking, earlier each morning. The second option looked like the one I was most likely to choose, as I wasn't used to depending like that on anyone – and besides, it was only for a fortnight at most. Of course, that meant I wouldn't be able to run in the morning like I use to do back home, but then again, I wouldn't do that anyway until I had a clear route in mind so I was sure I wasn't going to be using too much time.

We had barely entered the cafeteria building before the three boys launched toward the separate area where you gathered the food you wanted and paid for it. I laughed lightly at their antics; it was definitely something I could get used to. So I stood smiling while standing in line to get some food – and starting to feel rather hungry now that I was surrounded by it. There was a damper put on my good mood, however, as I saw the food available, and my hopes for a good lunch were shot down. The main course was something named 'Mystery Soup', of which the staff couldn't or wouldn't tell the contents, with a side of something I think was supposed to be meatloaf. I didn't want to take my chances with it, and I was relieved to see that the small salad bar they had – which was left mostly untouched by the student body (that much wasn't different from back home, at least) – seemed salvageable. At least there were some of the pies that Emily had made for the school there, too. Though I doubted it was only her that had made them for if she did, she couldn't possibly have done anything but baked since I saw her at the diner. Paying for the salad and the piece of pie, I headed toward the Pack.

You know, even if Jake hadn't shown me where they usually sat at lunch, it would be no problem locating them. They were loud, and messy, and… well, teenage boys. I was amused to see that not only were Jared and Kim attached at the hip (and tongue) again as Jake had said, but there was also a spare seat for me… beside Jake. I rolled my eyes; he really didn't try to hide his intentions. Not that I minded. They were all there; Kim and Jared, Seth, Embry and Quil, Jake… and a boy who I hadn't met before, but looked like all the rest of them. After a few seconds of thinking I concluded that he must be Paul, the only one from the Pack that I hadn't met yet.

"Hey Anna!" Seth greeted me in his cheery voice but in the process spewing several mouthfuls of food on the table.

"Hey Seth," I greeted back. "Hey guys." A garbled chorus of 'heys' sounded, the boys not wanting to spend time not eating apparently. I then looked at Paul, who strangely was shooting me something akin to a dark glare. While he looked like the other boys, he had some aura to him that the others didn't – a hint of darkness and danger. I ignored it for now; however, ever being the polite girl, I had to say, "You must be Paul. I'm Anna; it's a pleasure to meet you." He didn't greet me back. He narrowed his eyes and took another bite of the meat-that-was-supposed-to-be-meatloaf-but-wasn't. I was about to change subject when the table jumped along with Paul.

"What the hell? Who the fuck kicked me?" he turned his angry eyes on me accusingly. And I could feel myself shrink back. Paul reminded me too much of… Erik..., all the way down to the angry eyes that he had always had after we broke up.

"I did you idiot," Jared said to him harshly. Paul turned his glare on Jared, who I thought was his best friend. Jared glared back. They were like that for half a minute before Paul went back to eating with a muttered 'Fuck you' thrown at Jared. The awkward silence continued for a couple of minutes more, as everyone started eating again. I felt Jake's leg brush my own, making me blush but I didn't react further. I was eating lunch, and it wouldn't do me any good to have my mind in the gutter. Soon enough the small chatter started up again, and I was perfectly fine with just sitting and listening to them. It was nice. I was about two thirds through my salad, and a few bites short of finishing the piece of pie, when I was brought into the conversation.

"So is it true?" Quil asked and leaned forward. When I raised my left eyebrow in question, not being able to verbally respond with my mouth full, he rolled his eyes. "You know, that you went total Einstein in Biology. I heard a couple of other students talking about it in the canteen; they said you steamrolled the other kids." All of them where looking at me now, Seth and Kim nodding at what Quil said – they were probably in the canteen with him.

"…Steamrolled is maybe exaggerating it a bit," I told them embarrassed.

This caused Embry to scoff. "Oh, puh-lease! You almost talked as much as the teacher," he said laughing. "Seriously, how'd you know that much about _cells_? I thought you liked math?"

"I'm just really studious," I told them honestly. "… and I may have the unfair advantage of already having finished the equivalent of High School back in Denmark." Silence again reigned at the table while the blood rushed to my cheeks again.

"You already finished High School?" Kim asked in slight disbelief.

"Not High School per se, but what is the equivalent of High School."

"Then why'd you come here?" Seth asked with a puzzled look. "I mean, why not just go to a university or college instead?" I swear I heard something akin to a whimper emanating from Jake. But before I could answer Seth or check if Jake was okay, Paul joined the conversation, and for the first time since he had not greeted me, acknowledged that I sat at the table. And what was the first thing he did? He insulted me.

Paul scoffed. "Were your marks that bad?"

"I assure you that my marks were more than okay, not that it is any of your concern," I shot back at him, with a hint of steel in my voice. Then I looked at Seth, "I didn't feel like going straight ahead to the university. I wanted to do something different, and to get away from home for a bit. So I applied for a year abroad and got accepted." Seth nodded and looked like he was going to ask another question, when Paul cut him off.

"You should've stayed there." My eyes hardening shot back to Paul.

"Excuse me?" What was his problem? What had I done to him in the half hour since I had met him that had him going after me like that? I could see a sneer forming on his face, and I wasn't backing down either. I did that to Erik, and I would _never_ do that again.

"You heard me," he sneered at me, and I vaguely noticed the other boys starting to stir. "You should have stayed away. We don't need you here."

"Paul," Jared said in a warning tone all the while that Jake started to tense up beside me. If Paul hadn't reminded me so much Erik, I might've backed down… but I didn't.

"Well," I scoffed at him. "Frankly I can assure you that I didn't come here for you. I came here for me, and I don't really care if you want me here or not, _Paul_."

"You're just like the rest of them," Paul growled at me. "All you palefaces seem to care about is yourselves! You take and you take but you never give. You're selfish and greedy and we have no need of your kind here! Go back to the pathetic and bland country you call home." Shocked at what he had said to me I dropped my fork. Paul got a smug look on his face, as if he knew he had won. He hadn't; he had just become one of the few people in a long time that had stirred my temper.

"_What_ did you call me!?" I sneered as I rose from my seat.

"A paleface. And that's what you are," Paul sneered back at me, also standing from his seat. By now I noticed that others than just our table were looking, but I didn't give a shit.

"You… Don't you _dare_ call me something as degrading as that! You insolent, hateful, intolerant, disrespectful mutt! If you hate me because of whom I am, or because of what I do; _fine_! But don't you dare for even a second think I will let you get away with calling me a paleface, to judge me by the color of my skin and who my ancestors were! And don't you _dare_ to insult the country I'm from, simply because it's different from yours!" I was aware that I was yelling at him now, and slightly shaking in anger. The Pack seemed shocked by my outburst – all of them except Jake, who was glaring holes through Paul, who was shaking as well. "I am more than just the color of my skin! I am a _person_ with a past and a future! And if you blatantly insult Denmark, MY HOME!, like that again I'll shove an American flag pole so far up your ass that it sticks out of your mouth, after which I will proceed to beat you with it, you ignorant idiot!"

I didn't wait around after that. I grabbed my bag and walked briskly out of the cafeteria, not caring that people were looking at me. The nerve of that idiot! He had hit one of the few buttons I had; racism. Sure, I had never experienced it against myself – God knows I didn't really expect it – but I had experienced it second-hand through Kazewa more times that I wanted to admit. And at those times I had gotten just as mad, especially one evening when Cassie told me how much it hurt him when people did that. Not that I could blame him; I would be hurt to if people took a step away from me and tightened their grip around their purses when I stepped into an elevator with them. I shook my head from the memory. It wouldn't help me calm down right now. Just thinking of Paul got me angry, that prick.

I walked back to the building with the laboratories in it, knowing that I had physics next, even if it was seventeen minutes away. There were already a couple of students inside the classroom, so it wasn't out of the question that I walk in there; though I needed some more time cooling off. I looked through the classrooms, but all of them had students in them – except the last one. I noticed right away that it wasn't a laboratory but a music room. All kinds of instruments, speakers, microphones, and anything used for music were there. A strained smile broke out on my face; this was exactly the kind of room that I needed to calm down in. I walked over to the piano, dropping my bag on the floor beside it, and sat on the piano bench. I opened the lid and let my fingers run along the edges of the white keys without pressing down on them, the smooth surface helping me relax. I jumped when the door opened, but relaxed at the sight of Jake's head peeking in. He looked worried, but it was quickly replaced by relief as he spotted me.

"There you are," he said as he entered the room. "I was looking for you."

"Sorry," I muttered. "And sorry you had to see me like that. He just really…" my jaws tensed at the thought of Paul.

"Hey, it's okay." Jake walked over to me. I moved to the side of the bench, making room for him – barely. "He had it coming. Paul's a jerk and everyone knows it." Jake's face hardened. "That doesn't give him any excuse to insult you like that. He had no right. I'm really sorry."

I sighed deeply. "I don't even think he realized how badly he insulted me. Tell me, Jake," I looked up at him, seeing his worried eyes on me. "Is paleface a common expression around here?" I got my answer when he winced. "I see."

"When most of us use the word paleface, it's really just the same as saying 'that white man'. There is nothing more to it than that," he paused. "And then there are the few, like Paul, who use it like an insult. I guess you know the stories of how the settlers pretty much decimated us. And some families hold grudges for a long time. It doesn't help that some of the older generation still hate white people because of what they have done to our culture." He then grabbed my hand and caressed it, much like I had with him earlier. "But that still doesn't give him the right to insult you like that. If you don't mind me saying, but the way you reacted it was like you have had experience with racism before. Isn't Denmark, like, 90% white people?"

"It is," I nodded. "But my best friend; his family isn't originally from Denmark, but from Iraq. But Cassie is Danish; he was born and raised in Denmark and the Danish culture; he just doesn't LOOK Danish. But some people… it's really and truly hard to see people you love get hurt." He tensed slightly, but nodded. Then after a moment,...

"Is he your boyfriend?" My lips twitched in amusement – a good sign.

"He was, but we haven't been together for almost two years now. He is… my family. He is my best friend since we were ten, and I trust no one more than I trust him." I could feel that Jake didn't really know how to react to that. And that was okay; most people didn't. In the end Jake decided to change the subject.

"Do you play?" he asked. "Piano, that is."

I nodded.

"Will you play me one of your songs?"

I blinked in surprise at him. He didn't know me that well, so he didn't know that what he had asked me was rather personal. I wrote songs like other people wrote in their diaries. But again that feeling of warmth and trust and… something welled up inside me as I looked at him.

"Sure," I agreed finally, and pressed one of the keys. The note rang clear in the empty classroom, as I tried to decide what song to play. After a few seconds I nodded mentally to myself and started playing the piano, my old friend in all emotions.

"_2 AM and she calls me 'cause I'm still awake,_

'_Can you help me unravel my latest mistake?_

_I don't love him. Winter just wasn't my season'._

_Yeah we walk through the doors, so accusing their eyes_

_Like they have any right at all to criticize,_

_Hypocrites; you're all here for the very same reason._

_'Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable_

_And life's like an hourglass, glued to the table_

_No one can find the rewind button, girl._

_So cradle your head in your hands;_

_And breathe... just breathe,_

_Oh breathe, just breathe._

_May he turned 21 on the base at Fort Bliss,_

_"Just a day" he said down to the flask in his fist,_

_"Ain't been sober, since maybe October of last year."_

_Here in town you can tell he's been down for a while,_

_But, my God, it's so beautiful when the boy smiles,_

_Wanna hold him. Maybe I'll just sing about it._

'_Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable,_

_And life's like an hourglass, glued to the table._

_No one can find the rewind button, boys,_

_So cradle your head in your hands,_

_And breathe... just breathe,_

_Oh breathe, just breathe_

_There's a light at each end of this tunnel,_

_You shout 'cause you're just as far in as you'll ever be out_

_And these mistakes you've made, you'll just make them again_

_If you'd only try turning around._

_2 AM and I'm still awake, writing a song_

_If I get it all down on paper, it's no longer inside of me,_

_Threatening the life it belongs to_

_And I feel like I'm naked in front of the crowd_

_Cause these words are my diary, screaming out loud_

_And I know that you'll use them, however you want to_

_But you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable,_

_And life's like an hourglass, glued to the table_

_No one can find the rewind button now_

_Sing it if you understand._

_And breathe, just breathe_

_Woah breathe, just breathe,_

_Oh breathe, just breathe,_

_Oh breathe, just breathe."_

Finishing the song, the awe in Jake's eyes had only grown. He swallowed, "What was it really about?"

"That," I sighed, "is a story for another time. Come on, we need to get to class. Do you have physics?"

"History," he answered with a pout. I grabbed my bag and walked out into the hallway with Jake, who grabbed my arm as I started walking toward the classroom I had to be in. I looked at him puzzled. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I am," I smiled at him. "Thanks."

"I'll see you later, okay?" I simply nodded at him, not knowing how else to respond.

* * *

**Author's Note:** And the first day of school is finally done. Now, I'm not promising anything, but it is very likely that the next chapter will be from Jacob's Point of View. Hope you look forward to it as much as I do.

The song used in the end of the chapter is 'Breathe' by Anna Nalick. If you haven't listened to it before, I seriously recommend you doing it.

Rebel Out.


End file.
